Power Rangers Jungle Fury: CAT GOT YOUR TONGUE?
by AnimeJunkieGrrl
Summary: After defeating Arachnikhan, the fivesome of rangers have to battle a new threat to Ocean Bluff. But they find out that his powers could leave them speechless. Lily/Keenan with slight RJ/Gwen. R&R...please and thank you! Set a bit after Way Of the Master.
1. Chapter 1

POWER RANGERS JUNGLE FURY: CAT GOT YOUR TONGUE?

This is the second installment of our series and it starts the day after they defeat Arachnikhan. Oh, there will be a little bit of RJ/Gwen in this one...but this time we're focusing on Lily and Keenan. We just hope this lives up to our last fic. And also THANK YOU for reviewing Beauty and the Beast. Pass it on and TELL YOUR FRIENDS! :)

A/N: Oh, and for anybody wondering what little Makomba (the baby Cheetah) looks like, here's a link to the perfect pic. Tell me he isn't a cutie!

If the link doesn't work here, it's in my profile. ;)

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It was the morning after the rangers' defeat of Arachnikhan and at the Ocean Bluff Veterinary Hospital, pet owners were going in and out of the large ivory-painted building either bringing in new patients or taking them back home. Doctors and interns were scrambling from one emergency to another while the two leading vets were doing their morning rounds in the wild animal compound. Gwen was weighing Olmec and checking his vitals to make sure he was developing normally while Keenan walked over to Cita's pen with clipboard in hand. As he normally did, he jotted down a few numbers before looking into the actual pen to find Cita and ONE baby cheetah. After doing a quick scan around the compound and failing to catch site of the missing feline infant, he did the only thing he could think of at that point in time...

"GWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEENNNNNN!!" He shouted in a blind panic.

Her brother screamed at the top of his lungs and not only did it startle the animals in the compound out of a sound sleep for some, but it scared the living daylights out of Gwen so bad, she threw her clipboard into the air where Serena caught it in her talons. Gwen looked up at the golden eagle who was making her way down to perch and smirked.

"I owe you a huge fish for catching that but I'm afraid you're gonna be minus one owner in a minute."

The lead vet quickly ran to her brother who was running around like the proverbial chicken with its head cut off looking in baskets and peeking in any opening that a small, precocious little cheetah cub could crawl through. Gwen just stood there watching her brother searching manically for the wild kitten and would have been content to witness him go completely bonkers if she didn't need his help today. So, for reasons that had nothing to do with being the older sister and everything to do with the hospital, she just flat out asked.

"What's wrong, bro?"

Keenan hopped up from the kneeling position he'd taken to peer in between two bookcases and almost flew to his sister. He was in such a state of quandary, he couldn't form a complete sentence; his words just came out broken and scattered as he tried to convey to Gwen what he was trying to say.

"Baby...cheetah...gone...FFFTT!!" At the last 'word', his hands flew up nearly hitting Gwen in the face.

Gwen leaned over to look past Keenan and saw a very calm Cita lying down with an equally calm, albeit sleepy, female cheetah cub. She looks back to her flustered sibling and started to laugh. The second lead vet just looked at her like she'd lost her mind and went back to his frantic search, yelling as he did.

"Look, if you're not gonna help me look for the beady-eyed little anklebiter, move!" He looked over to see Cita staring back at him, her tail flicking stiffly back and forth meaning she didn't appreciate when Keenan called her baby boy.

"I meant that in the nicest possible way." He corrected with a nervous chuckle before resuming his search.

Gwen just shook her head and casually walked over to her deranged sibling. While his back was turned to her, she grabbed his right arm and swung him around to face her.

"KEENAN! Calm down, bro. Breathe! In through the nose, out through the mouth."

Both vets did their calming breathing and it seemed to do the trick. Keenan had finally calmed down enough to talk like a human being and not a malfunctioning robot.

"Gwen, I don't want to alarm you...but Makomba is missing. He's not in the pen with his mother."

Gwen just stood in front of her brother with her hands on her hips, not saying one word; her eyes did the talking as they said; _'You're kidding, right?'_ After remaining silent for a good minute and rolling her eyes, she brings her right hand off of her hips and balls her hand in a loose fist. She raises it towards her brother and raps her fist against his forehead three times as if she were knocking on a door, all the while making the clicking sound with her tongue.

"Um...hello, is anybody in there? Bro, did you forget what happened yesterday?"

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

_**Speaking of cats...I need you to return little Makomba to the Animal Hospital, Lily."**_

_**Gwen had a playful smirk on her face. Keenan had told her about Lily's failed attempt to smuggle the spotted ball of fluff out of the hospital. Lily exhaled sharply, seemingly outraged that Gwen would accuse her of taking the tiny cheetah cub.**_

"_**Gwen, I am **__shocked __**that you would accuse me of taking the cheetah. How could you assume that I took that cute little baby?" She asked.**_

"_**Because that cute little baby is standing next to you with a stuffed rabbit in its mouth like it was a fresh kill."**_

_**Gwen pointed to Lily's feet. When the blonde ranger looked down, she saw the tiny cheetah with a stuffed yellow rabbit in its mouth, stuffing spilling out of its sides and one of its ears bitten off. Looking back up at Gwen, she sidestepped one step to the right to hide the little fuzzball and out of her mouth came the words...**_

"_**What cheetah?"**_

_**Casey, Theo and RJ groaned at Lily's feeble attempt to hide the results of her kitty heist. Gwen had her hands on her hips as she waited for Lily's flimsy excuse. This had to be good.**_

"_**Um...uhhhhh...it followed me home?" Lily gave her a **__'you're not buying this, are you'__** grin as the baby cheetah mewed with the rabbit still in its mouth.**_

"_**Wanna try again?" The lady vet asked.**_

_**Lily sighed. She knew her love for babies would catch up to her. She had to confess.**_

"_**Remember our first round of searches for RJ and I was sent downtown?" Gwen nodded and waited for the yellow ranger to continue. "Well...I made a little side trip to the animal hospital and went to Cita's pen...where I **__kinda __**had some turkey in my backpack...and the cheetah cub **__kinda __**went to it and climbed in...and I **__kinda __**walked out with him." She cringed lightly.**_

"_**So you **__kinda __**stole him." Gwen said plainly.**_

"_Stole__** is such an ugly word...can't we use..."**_

"_**Cat-napped?" Gwen interrupted.**_

"_**I was gonna say 'invited to a play date." Lily answered.**_

_**The yellow ranger picked up the cheetah cub which still had the mutilated corpse of her stuffed bunny rabbit in its jaws and held him closely to her chest.**_

"_**Come on, Gwen. Can't I keep him for just one night? Cita didn't seem to mind. Pretty please?"**_

"_**Lily, you know I can't..."**_

_**Before Gwen could finish, she looked up to see Lily turn on her version of the sad puppy dog eyes, only this time she added the dreaded lip quiver.**_

"_**Lily, that's not going to work. The only person who can do that to me is..."**_

_**Again, she was interrupted when she saw none other than RJ stand next to Lily...his own face displaying the sad puppy dog eyes and lip quiver. She had to admit, he just looked so cute...but she had to be strong. "Those eyes, RJ...whoever gave you those eyes should be **__shot__**!" She thought to herself.**_

"_**See, that's not fair! Two against one!?"**_

_**The two quickly turned to three when Casey joined in the puppy face onslaught.**_

"_**This is wrong on **__so__** many levels! How can you live with yourselves?!" She asked. "Well, at least Theo is exhibiting some maturity."**_

_**She was quickly proven wrong when the blue ranger added his puppy dog face to the mix. She now had four sad puppy faces.**_

"_**You little...RJ, what are you teaching these kids!? Keenan, do something!"**_

"_**Okay."**_

_**And Keenan completed the puppy staredown by adding his face to the group.**_

"_**Traitor! Lily, I know you love little Makomba but I'm afraid the answer is..."**_

_**She was going to say no; she had every right to say no; but she never got the chance to say no because all five started to whimper like a litter of crying newborn puppies. They were wearing her down with an overdose of cuteness. She could handle one puppy dog face...but five!? Gwen might as well be Superman locked in a room full of Kryptonite.**_

"_**You guys SUCK!" She groaned in frustration through clenched teeth.**_

_**They responded by whimpering even louder. She just shook her head and looked to her friends...which was very difficult at the moment.**_

"_**Alright! Uncle! I give up! Makomba can stay the night...ONE NIGHT! But you have to promise to take him back first thing in the morning."**_

"_**I promise! Thanks, Gwen!"**_

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Gwen continued to refresh her forgetful brother's memory.

"Yeah, you joined in with THEM and their puppy face assault. You sold me out!"

Keenan finally remembered the events of yesterday and chuckled nervously.

"Oh, yeah. I remember...but Gwen you should know me and my motto by now. I can't let my friends down, I can't stand by when innocent people need help and I..."

"Can't say no to a pretty girl." Gwen finished with her arms folded.

"Can't say no to...HEY!"

Gwen chuckled and patted her brother on the shoulder before speaking again.

"I NEVER want to hear you call me absent-minded again." She said with a smirk. "Besides, the cub in question should be making his way back right about..."

"Hey, guys. Is he okay, Gwen?" She asked with concern.

Lily greeted her friends with her usual effervescent demeanor. She had her yellow backpack in hand and gently set it on the ground.

"Now. Hey, Lily. You'll have to excuse Keenan; he's having a bit of a brain fart."

Both girls chuckled as the male vet sneered at his sibling.

"Not funny, sis." Keenan grumbled.

Both girls giggled and hugged him to apologize.

"Aww, we're sorry, bro. It was just a joke."

"Yeah, we didn't mean to make you feel bad; forgive me?" Lily asked batting her eyelashes.

Gwen had him pegged just right. Keenan took one look at Lily's blue eyes and all was instantly forgiven. His weakness for pretty girls had won out again.

"Of course, Lily. I can't stay mad at you." Keenan said with a grin.

"Thanks...oh, and I believe this belongs to Cita."

The yellow ranger kneels down beside her backpack and unzips the top. As she does, two tiny ears peek out of the opening before being followed by its fuzzy head. The baby cheetah's eyes peer over the side before it darts his head back in making Lily laugh. Little Makomba thought it was another game they were playing.

"Come on, little guy. Time to go see mama." Lily coaxed.

The little feline poked its head out again and mewed cutely. When it saw his mom and sister, he hopped out of the backpack and bounded over, immediately playing with his mother's tail. Cita wasn't the least bit worried; she knew her baby boy was in good hands.

"So, did you have fun, ya little stinker?" Gwen asked little Makomba.

The baby cheetah mewed cutely making Lily squeal. It was clear she'd grown attached to the 'little anklebiter' as Keenan called him.

"And how about you and the guys, Lily? Did he behave?_" "Makomba? Behave? Ugh, even __**I**__ knew that was a dumb question." _She said to herself.

"Oh, he was great...a little angel." Lily lied through her teeth.

Gwen smirked. She knew Makomba had a reputation for being a little troublemaker and wondered if Lily was hiding something.

"Little angel, was he?" She prodded.

Lily knew Gwen could see through the lie. So she relented and decided to come clean.

"Okay, I'll admit it. He did give us a run for our money back at the loft..."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

_**It was an hour after Keenan and Gwen left RJ's loft bickering like the brother and sister they were. The three teen rangers and RJ were using Lily's plushie rabbit corpes to play tug-of-war with the tiny cheetah cub that they and Keenan had conned Gwen into leaving behind for the night.**_

"_**This is gonna be so cool! Who else can say they hosted a slumber party for a baby cheetah?" Lily asked cheerfully.**_

"_**Siegfried and Roy?" Theo suggested.**_

"_**Tarzan?" Casey added.**_

"_**Jack Hanna?" RJ chimed in.**_

_**Lily looked at each guy with an annoyed expression.**_

"_**It was a rhetorical question." She shot back as she rolled her eyes.**_

_**While the four loft tenants were involved in their riveting discussion, none of them noticed that Makomba had wandered off on his own little adventure. Someone once said that curiosity killed the cat...apparently nobody told HIM that. By the time the rangers had finished their meaningless debate, Theo noticed that the stuffed bunny he was holding was missing something...the cheetah kitten tugging on the other end.**_

"_**Um...guys? Where's the kitten?"**_

"_**What are you talking about, he's right...here?" Casey answered with uncertainty.**_

_**The red ranger looked down and realized that little Makomba was indeed missing.**_

"_**Let's not panic. He may be a cheetah but he's still just a baby. He couldn't have gotten far, right?" RJ asked hoping that the cub didn't wander off.**_

"_**He's right. He has to still be in here...somewhere. Let's split up."**_

_**Everyone nodded and each took a different section of the loft: RJ took the sitting area, looking around each of his 5 tvs and under his beloved green chair; Casey searched the training area and Theo and Lily both scoured the upper level.**_

"_**Here, kitty, kitty. Come out, come out wherever you are." Lily called in a sing-song voice while looking under the kitchen table.**_

"_**Come out, little Macaroni." Theo called while checking the upper loft near the hammocks.**_

"_**Where are you, Macintosh?" RJ addressed as he checked under the cushion of his chair.**_

"_**Where are you hiding, Macarena?" Casey asked as he rummaged through the training equipment.**_

_**Lily stood up, hitting her head in the edge of the table and looked down at her friends while she ribbed the back of her throbbing head.**_

"_**Where do you come up with these names? His name's Makomba." Lily said in slight annoyance. She knew they knew his correct name.**_

"_**We know that; we're just having a little fun." Casey grinned as he looked by the basketball hoop.**_

"_**We have to find him. Gwen's gonna go ballistic if she finds out I lost him." Lily replied.**_

_**They were about to resume their search when they heard mewing coming from above them. Each person looked up and, lo and behold, there was the tiny spotted ball of fluff up in the rafters.**_

"_**How'd he get up there!?" RJ asked in shock.**_

"_**He probably climbed one of the pillars. If he falls from up there..."Casey started.**_

"_**Don't finish that sentence. We need to get him down from there." Theo surmised.**_

"_**I'll climb up there. Just get a blanket to catch us in case we fall." RJ ordered as he started up one of the pillars.**_

"_**Be careful, RJ." Lily called out.**_

_**What they didn't know was that the tiny cheetah cub was very capable of getting himself down from such a dizzying height. He would give the other vets fits whenever he went on one of his excursions. RJ had climbed up the pillar to the rafters above the teens and saw little 'Macintosh', as he mistakenly called him, laying perfectly on the beam in front of the pizza master; his eyes looking right at the would-be savior as it mewed.**_

"_**There you are, little fella. Don't be scared. I'm gonna get you down from here." He cooed as he crawled towards the tiny kitten. "Get the blanket ready." He called down to Casey and Theo.**_

_**The little cheetah tilted its head and mewed in confusion; he was wondering why this guy with the weird collar and messy mane was up here with him. Surely, he wasn't trying to get him down from there; he was having too much fun. RJ crawled closer to what he thought was a scared baby and tried to reach out to grab the little feline. Only his efforts were thwarted when Makomba inched backwards. He liked it up there and was gonna come down when he was good and ready.**_

"_**Come here, ya little-WHOA!"**_

_**As he tried to grab the little kitten, he slipped and was hanging by his arms above the floor. As RJ tried to pull himself up, Makomba thought he was playing a game and padded over to his hands that held a death grip on the beam. RJ looked up and saw the twinkle in the little cub's eyes and the twitch in his tail and started to plead with him.**_

"_**Please don't do what I think you're gonna do."**_

_**But the little kitten didn't listen. Makomba mewed cutely and started to lick RJ's gripping fingers with his sandpaper-like tongue. The Pai Zhuq master began laughing as his fingers slowly began to loosen.**_

"_**HAHAHA! STOP! THAT TICKLES! HAHAHA!"**_

_**He kept trying to pull himself up but his laughing kept him from succeeding and the tiny cub kept on tasting his fingers until one hand slipped off. Makomba quickly went to town on his other hand as RJ called down to his students, laughing.**_

"_**Guys, help! I'm slipping!"**_

_**Theo and Casey held out the blanket under their teacher ready to catch him when he fell; they were hoping that little Makomba would follow suit. Three fingers...two...one...**_

"_**AAAAHHH!"**_

_**RJ lost his grip and fell the to floor; fortunately, the blanket held by Casey and Theo caught him...unfortunately, the force of his fall pulled the two male students inward until the crashed into each other on top of RJ. Lily ran down from the upper level down to her friends who were piled on top of each other in a crumpled heap. As Theo tried to lift himself up, Makomba jumped from his perch, hopped down onto Theo's back, pushing him down again, and jumped into Lily's arms. The baby cheetah curled up in her embrace and mewed cutely as it looked up at her innocently.**_

"_**Oh, you had us worried, sweetie. Don't ever do that again, okay?" Lily cooed.**_

_**Makomba mewed in agreement as he reached up to lick her nose as her friends slowly rose from the floor, stretching every aching muscle in their bodies. They looked at Lily holding the offending cub and sneered.**_

"_**You mean that little twerp could come down anytime it wanted?" Theo asked annoyed.**_

"_**I can't believe we did all that work for nothing!" Casey added.**_

_**RJ was about to add his two cents when Makomba eyed something even more interesting; something big...and green. He hopped from Lily's arms and swiftly ran to the tv area, much to RJ's horror.**_

"_**Don't even think about it." He shouted.**_

_**But it was too late. The little kitten had made its way into the forbidden green chair of the Pai Zhuq master. He curled up on the plush green cushion and purred contentedly. RJ stood in front of him with his arms folded and looked down at the spotted kitten. Makomba looked up as the pizza chef began to speak.**_

"_**Okay, if you don't obey any other rule while you're here, you obey this one: NOBODY sits in that chair but me. Not Casey, not Lily, Not Theo and especially not a little ball of fluff..."**_

_**But he didn't finish. He couldn't. Makomba did the very same thing all of them pulled on Gwen to allow him to stay here for the night. The tiny cub looked up at him with sad eyes and mewed pathetically.**_

"_**Come on, you're not fighting fair here. You can't sit..."**_

_**Makomba kept mewing sadly and put his tiny head down as if to say 'I'm sowwy. You want me to leave?' Theo and Casey watched and their anger soon vanished. RJ let out a long sigh and shook his head. He was being done in by his own technique.**_

"_**Oh...alright. You can sit there. But just for an hour. After that you're gonna have to give it back." RJ relented.**_

_**Makomba mewed happily and settled back into the cushion. He turned to walk from the sitting area when his students smirked at him.**_

"_**What?"**_

"_**You caved. You couldn't go through with it." Theo commented, his smirk growing.**_

"_**You're just a softie deep down." Casey added with a grin.**_

"_**So, what if I am? The little fuzzball used my puppy-dog eyes against me and turned them into kitty-kat eyes. I couldn't get mad at him." RJ defended himself.**_

"_**It's not that, RJ. Babies have the cuteness market cornered and they know it." Lily giggled.**_

"_**I don't know how Siegfried and Roy do it." RJ chuckled as the little cheetah cub watched Animal Planet on the largest tv. Deciding it was better to join him instead of beating him, RJ and the other rangers sat on the floor around the green chair and watched tv with a very happy cub.**_

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"...and that's what happened." Lily finished with a nervous giggle.

All Gwen could do was chuckle; she knew that little troublemaker would do something crazy.

"_He outdid himself this time."_ She thought. "He's full of surprises. So, you wanna say bye to the little guy? I mean you can visit him anytime you want; you all can." Gwen offered.

"Sure. Bye, little guy. See you tomorrow."

Makomba padded over to Lily as she knelt down to pet him and cutely licked her nose. She then petted his sister and Cita who walked towards Makomba's temporary guardian.

"Keep an eye on this one, Cita. He's liable to get away with murder." Lily warned jokingly.

Cita looked at Lily and winked making the yellow ranger do a double take.

"Am I going crazy or did she just wink at me?" Lily asked as she turned to face Keenan.

"This coming from the woman who attempted 'KittyGate' not once, but twice." He said with a smirk.

All Lily could do was blush furiously as she looked away.

"Oh, leave her alone. They look adorable together and you can't blame her for kitty-napping him. Some girls just love cute babies." Gwen defended her blonde friend.

"Well, I better get going. See you later tonight, guys." Lily said before making her way out of the compound with Gwen, Keenan and the animals voicing their farewells.

Before leaving out fully, she turned back to deliver a message to Gwen.

"Oh, Gwen, I almost forgot. I spoke to RJ before I left JKP and he said he couldn't stop thinking about you." She delivered with a big grin.

"Really?" She asked as her thought went back to yesterday and the 'phone call' last night. A grin appeared on her face as she replied. "Tell him he's on my mind, too."

"I will. Bye." She said one last time before leaving.

Meanwhile at Dai Shi's lair...

The black lion lord was livid...not only did the panther ranger get over her insurmountable fear of spiders...not only did she save RJ from Arachnikhan's poison...but the rangers defeat him with a new megazord! Camille tentatively walked in after her master bellowed for her; to say he was none to happy about yesterday's failure would and understatement.

"Well, what do you have to say for yourself? Choose your words wisely, Camille; they just may be your epitaph." He warned in a low voice as he gripped her chin in his hand forcefully.

Camille was trying desperately to find something to say...anything to convince Dai Shi that her stunning defeat wasn't as bad as he made it out to be.

"The one called RJ has a strong will. I still don't know how he managed to break free from Arachnikhan's spell or how SHE managed to change him back!" Her words dripped with venom as she remembered how the Black Ranger had bested her before.

Dai Shi pulled her face closer to his as he spoke his latest order.

"Make sure you rectify this...or I'll rip out that tongue of yours and use it as a whip!"

Camille clamped her hands over her mouth and let out a frightened squeal as her eyes widened in fear.

"Of course, sire. I'll come up with a way to destroy them once and for all." She replied bowing and leaving his sight rather quickly.

Back at JKP...

Lily returned to the loft with a smile on her face, of course Makomba always made her smile.

"Morning, guys." She greeted with a cheerful wave.

"Morning, Lil. Do I need to ask what got you in such a good mood?" Theo already knew the answer.

"I just dropped off little Makomba at the animal hospital...you should have seen Keenan. Gwen said he was panicking when he noticed the little guy missing." She giggled.

Casey was in the kitchen area on the upper level when he heard the conversation.

"Did he forget you had him? He was here yesterday when the little fella came out of your hiding place. He even put us over the edge when we ganged up on Gwen with the puppy face attack." Casey added.

All three rangers laughed as the memory came flooding back to them.

"I know! Did you see her face when all five of us started to whimper? She couldn't take it!" Theo laughed.

"'You guys SUCK!' That was so priceless!" Casey quoted the lady vet.

RJ decided to make an appearance from his meditation room and join his students whe he heard them talking. When he hears Gwen's name, a warm smile came to his face; she stole his heart.

"Lily, how is Gwen doing, by the way?" He asked with interest.

"Oh, she's fine, RJ. She can't stop thinking about you." She giggled with a wink.

"She said that?" RJ asked dreamily.

"Her words exactly." Lily grinned. Well, she paraphrased but it was the same thing.

"Wow. She's been on my mind, too." RJ replied.

The teen rangers smirked as their master thought wistfully of the lady vet he'd taken a shine to.

"No doubt about it...he's in love." Theo observed.

As the three rangers looked on, a loud explosion outside rocked JKP and the loft above. RJ runs to the viewing area and sees the source of the commotion on his five tvs.

"We got trouble, dudes. Time to go to work."

"We're on it, RJ! Let's go, guys!" Casey ordered.

Each ranger grabbed a vine and swung out through the portal above RJ's veiwing area that led outside.

END OF CHAPTER ONE

So, what's causing havoc in Ocean Bluff this time? If you want to know, Read and leave LOTS of reviews! I'm working on...Hey, how'd you get in here, ya little twerp?

AJG smiled as Makomba mewed up at her. She then looks at her readers.

Yes, there will be more of this little scene-stealer. Say bye, Makomba.

Makomba meows cutely.


	2. Chapter 2

Sorry this took so long. I haven't been feeling too well, physically or mentally, lately. I'm doing a little better so I figured I better post the next chapter. Enjoy, and again, sorry :P

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After his students swung out of the loft through the exit portal, RJ looks at his five tv screens and sees the citizens of Ocean Bluff running away from the museum flailing their arms and...not screaming? The Pai Zhuq master rose form his chair and adjusted the volume of all five sets just to be sure they were working properly. The culprit has yet to make an appearance but his presence was already being felt. The trio of rangers, already donning their suits, rush to the scene and survey the damage.

"This is the quietest monster attack I've ever been to." Theo commented resting his right hand on his helmet's chin.

"Well, at least there's proof that one took place." The red tiger replied as he looked around. "I don't see monsters yet, RJ." Casey reported as people ran by him and his friends.

"Yeah, but it's weird though. Everyone's acting like mimes." Lily observed.

"What could have caused all this?" Theo asked in shock.

"I have no idea, dude...but whatever it is, it needs to be stopped. Call Keenan and Gwen for backup." RJ instructed. He had a feeling this would take all of them to conquer.

"We're on it, RJ."

Casey tapped the side of his helmet to activate the communication device embedded in it, placing a call to their two fellow rangers.

Meanwhile, at the Animal Hospital...

Keenan was just handing a little boy his healed iguana when he heard a beeping emanating from the inside of his lab coat. He waved goodbye to the family and ran to find his older sister. Luckily, it didn't take too long to seek her out because she was just coming out of the delivery room. When she pulled of her surgical mask covering her face, she looked up and saw her brother give her the silent cue that they were needed 'elsewhere'. Nodding in comprehension, the two siblings rushed to the alley behind the hospital and put on their shades resembling those the teens had.

"Keenan, here."

"Keenan, Gwen, we're at the museum and we need a hand. Got some free time?" Casey asked.

"You're in luck, our schedules just opened up. We're on our way." Gwen answered before tapping her shades and looking at her brother. "Ready to ranger up?"

"Born ready, sis!" Keenan answered.

Both nodded to each other after making sure they were alone and shouted as they went through the motions...

"JUNGLE BEAST! SPIRIT UNLEASHED!"

Keenan does his kata with streams of silver chi radiating from his hands. He streaks forward, his eagle helmet forming around his head. Multiple images of him in action poses appear before his final pose in front of his screeching animal zord. Next was Gwen's turn. She performs her fluid kata with black chi coming from her hands. Her helmet materializes and she has a collage of her action poses appear before her final stance in front of her panther zord with glowing yellow eyes.

Back at the museum, the trio of rangers scan the area for the culprit as Keenan and Gwen reach them. The older rangers see the frightened people waving and running around silently and look at each other weirdly.

"Did we walk in on a mime convention or something?" Gwen asked with her hands on her hips.

"Yeah, what happened?" Keenan inquired as he took a quick survey of the parking lot.

"It looks like whatever trashed this place, robbed these people of their voices." Theo observed.

"And the same will happen to the five of you!"

Before they could turn around, the monster ambushes them delivering a brutal kick to each ranger sending them into the wall of the museum. Groaning, the rangers, slowly rose from the ground and turned to see who attacked them. When Lily looked up, she saw what looked like a giant clam with legs and jagged edges on its blood red shell resembling teeth.

"Who are you and what did you do to these people!?" Lily asked holding her arm.

They heard the large mollusk laugh evilly before it obliged them with an answer.

"Funny you should ask, my dear. I am Bivalvidon...or you can just call me the last thing you'll ever see! As for what I did to them, that will be revealed in due time...but right now..."

The large mollusk monster rushes the five rangers and engage in hand-to-hand combat with them. After being pushed back into a row of cars, Keenan stands and helps his fellow rangers up.

"Thanks, bro." Gwen replied.

"This is getting us nowhere! **Jungle Katana!**"

The silver ranger holds his hands out at his sides and two katana blades materialize. He whirls them around his body before he strikes a pose. Following his example, the others call for their weapons.

"**Jungle Chucks!**"

"**Jungle Bo!**"

"**Jungle Tonfa!**"

"**Jungle Sais!**"

Each ranger charge head on at Bivalvidon with their weapons but make no headway in defeating the large clam who retreats inside his hinged shell. The rangers furiously attack the indestructible covering without success.

"This is just great! Our weapons can't bust through this cockamamie shell!" She grumbled kicking the shell.

"Let me take a crack at it! **Jungle Mace!**"

The teal colored weapon appeared in Lily's hands and Gwen and Keenan looked at her with amazement.

"WHERE'D SHE GET THAT!?" The siblings asked in stereo.

"Long story. We'll tell you about it later." Casey replied chuckling.

Lily swung the large teal and black ball at the enemy's shell launching it until it struck the hard surface. The yellow cheetah kept attacking Bivalvidon's shell over and over until it burst open. The monster's legs shoot out and spin kicked the rangers away from him sending them flying in all directions. Once on his feet, he sets his sites on a disoriented Lily and aims his laser at her. Keenan picks himself up and sees his friend in danger.

"Lily, **watch out**!"

The Silver Ranger runs to the rescue and jumps in to shield Lily from the laser. Unfortunately, Lily sees this and tries to shield HIM form the attack.

"Keenan, don't..."

She didn't get the chance to finish their sentence. As soon as both rangers were in range, Bivalvidon fires his laser at them and launches them both across the parking lot of the museum screaming.

"Keenan! Lily!" Theo shouted in horror as his friends were blasted.

"NOW you did it! Guys, let's go! Call to the beast inside! FREE THE TIGER!" Casey shouted.

"Call to the beast inside! UNLEASH THE JAGUAR!" Theo called.

"Call to the beast inside! RELEASE THE PANTHER!" Gwen mimicked.

The three feline spirits appear from their hosts, designated auras billowing form their bodies and attack the enemy marine animal knocking him away from their teammates...but the damage had already been done. The smoking rinshi form shakily stood up and pointed to the rangers as he backed away from the scene.

"I'll be back to finish the job! Count on it!" Bivalvidon promised.

"We'll be waiting!" Casey called out as Bivalvidon retreats.

He, Theo and Gwen run to help their friends after they got blasted.

"Keenan, Lily, are you guys alright?" Theo asked with concern.

"Let's get them back to the loft first." Gwen suggested as she held up her brother. "I can take a look at them then."

Theo and Casey nodded in agreement as all five headed back to the loft above JKP. Once there, Gwen examines her friends for any hidden injuries.

"Are they okay? They're not hurt, are they?" Theo asked with concern.

"Physically, they're fine. No bruises or broken bones from what I can tell." Gwen answered as she finished her examination. Casey went to the silver and yellow rangers and looked them in the eyes.

"Do you guys feel alright?" The red tiger asked.

Lily and Keenan open their mouths to answer Casey, but are shocked to find that they're unable to speak. Lily brings her hand to her throat in panic as if she were choking and Keenan flails his arms. RJ and the rangers watch as their friends give in to their fear.

"Just as I thought. It seems that the monster you dudes were facing has the ability to steal people's voices." RJ observed.

As their friends struggle to make any kind of vocal response, Gwen watched her brothers mouth and nodded.

"I'm not sure, bro. All I can say is try it." She replied.

Casey, Theo and RJ looked at Gwen like they were waiting for the men in white coats to come and take her away. Gwen saw their dazed and confused expressions and asked a valid question:

"What?"

"Why did you just say what you said just now?" Casey inquired.

Gwen looked at the red cub and at her friends and put the pieces together.

"Oh, that. A long time ago, I learned sign language and how to read lips." She explained with a grin.

RJ looked at his girl and sighed. She just **had **to say the word 'lips'. She **had **to remind him that they still haven't kissed yet. The memory of her teasing him after she saved his life never left him. She knew which buttons to push on him to get the desired reaction she wanted. But he got her back later that night. Still, it wasn't the same as the full-on liplock he dreamed about since meeting her.

_"I wish you'd read **my **lips...up close and personal."_ He thought to himself longingly. Shaking his head to bring him back to reality, he spoke.

"So, Gwen. What did he ask you?" RJ wondered aloud.

"He was asking if they could still morph despite not being able to talk." Gwen replied.

As far as she knew, morphing was voice-activated. So, if everyone's hunches were right, this could be trouble for the rangers.

"Only one way to find out. Lily, Keenan, see if you can morph right now." RJ ordered.

The silver and yellow rangers put their solar morphers, tapped the left side of them and went through the motions, mouthing their call. To their dismay, and the horror of their teammates, nothing happened. Lily and Keenan were still in their civilian forms.

"Nothing happened." Theo commented.

"I was afraid of that. I think this was Bivalvidon's plan all along. He knows that morphing is voice-activated, so if he takes all of your voices...no more Power Rangers." The Pai Zhuq master explained seriously.

"There's gotta be something we can do. Without Lily and Keenan, we're at half strength against that thing." Theo added remembering the hard time they had with Bivalvidon. Not even Lily's Jungle Mace made a dent in his shell.

"Calm yourself, my young jaguar. Lily and Keenan are strong enough to handle this. I just need to think."

RJ sat on his yoga mat and started to meditate. He was trying to come up with a way so Lily and Keenan could morph and help battle this strong new enemy. Gwen, who just met him a couple of days ago and still knew little about him, looked on in a mixture of confusion and fascination.

"What's he doing?" She whispered.

"Meditating. It helps him clear his mind. I'm sure he's coming up with a way to get them the use of their voices back...at least until we destroy that clam." Casey whispered back.

After what seemed like an eternity of waiting, RJ slowly opened his eyes and his shoulders sank.

"I got nothing." He sighed.

The Pai Zhuq students couldn't believe it. As laid back and unorthodox as he was in his teaching methods, RJ always came up with some incredible plan or new weapon. He made their solar morphers and the Claw Cannon; how could he not devise a plan this time? Gwen, seeing the distress on the young rangers' faces knelt in front of RJ and held his hands.

"RJ, I still don't know that much about you, but I know you've got an idea in that head of yours. I know you can bring it out; just concentrate." Gwen pleaded softly.

RJ nodded with a grin and closed his eyes as Gwen held his hands in hers. A minute later...

"I got it!" RJ shouted to the delight of his students and friends.

Everyone smiled as Theo chuckled to himself with his arms folded.

"Figures. All it takes for RJ to get a good idea is for his girl to touch him." He commented with a smirk.

"Jealous?" RJ answered back with a smirk of his own. "Gwen, I need you, Casey and Theo to come with me."

Reluctantly, the three rangers went with the Pai Zhuq pizza master leaving Lily and Keenan alone. Both of them were thinking the same thing...revenge.

_"Man, this sucks like a Hoover! The next time I meet that clam, he's gonna get shucked up!"_ Keenan thought to himself.

_"Just let me get my claws into him! He's chowder!"_ Lily mused to herself.

Meanwhile, at Dai Shi's lair...

Camille was walking around Bivalvidon proudly as if she were the one to attack the rangers. She was sure this would please Dai Shi. After the speech he gave her about winning his love, she was bound and determined not to fail him this time.

"This turned out better than planned , Master. Nothing frightens these humans more than not being able to call for help and with Bivalvidon stealing their voices, their fear level will skyrocket!" Camille boasted. "And what was the icing on the cake...he managed to steal the voices of two of the rangers!"

"Yeah, he showed us!"

Bivalvidon spoke using the pilfered voice of the Yellow ranger. Dai Shi listened with renewed interest.

"Impressive." Dai Shi bellowed.

"We could use these voices to lure the remaining rangers out of hiding! Then once we take their voices, there will be nothing stopping you from dominating the world, Master!" This time he used Keenan's stolen voice.

"This is more than we could have hoped for! Finally the Power Rangers will be no more...especially that black one!" She cackled evilly.

"Then why are you still here!? GO and put your plan into action!" The Black Lion roared scaring Camille invisible.

"Yes, sire. As you wish." Camille squeaked out, still invisible.

Back at the loft...

RJ had on his welder's goggles and was feverishly working on some new devices at his workstation. The three rangers, who still had their voices, looked over his shoulders with goggles of their own at their master toiled over his new idea.

"What are you working on?" Theo asked. He noticed that RJ had taken the solar morphers of Lily and Keenan and was modifying them.

"I'm installing voice simulators into their morphers. They'll be able to read Lily and Keenan's lip movements like Gwen can and manipulate them into spoken words." RJ explained.

"Let's hope they work. We're gonna need them when that overgrown quahog comes back." Gwen added as she watched her man work.

"Don't worry, baby, they will. Besides, I already have a 'plan B' worked out just in case." RJ grinned at his lady.

The panther ranger smiled back at RJ. She had no idea that underneath his...well...his hippie image there was someone extremely skilled in technology. Clearly there was more to this guy than meets the eye.

"Cute AND smart. I hit the jackpot." Gwen quipped with a wink.

RJ turned to continue his work, the grin on his face even wider now.

_"She thinks I'm cute...**score**!"_ He thought to himself.

Theo and Casey groaned in annoyance. Lily and Keenan would if they could but whipped their heads around as the alarm sounded. Casey ran to RJ's tvs and saw their nemesis...and a few added wrinkles.

"Guys, he's back...and he's brought backup." The red tiger observed.

Gwen rolled her brown eyes thinking it was Camille back for round 2.

"Lemme guess...a brunette with an ugly hairdo and a tacky dress, right?"

"Nope...rinshi." Casey corrected.

"My second guess. Let's roll, guys!" Gwen ordered, but Theo was still worried about his mute friends.

"What about Keenan and Lily? Aren't we gonna need them for this?"

"I still need to finish the simulators. When I'm done, they'll be able to join you. You'll just have to buy me some time." RJ ordered still welding.

"Not a problem. Ready, guys?" Casey asked putting on his shades.

"Ready!" Both the black and blue rangers answered putting their shades on.

All three went into their poses and shouted:

"JUNGLE BEAST! SPIRIT UNLEASHED!"

All three rangers morph into their uniforms and head downtown to face Bivalvidon who was supervision the rinshi in their destruction.

"Go, burn this city to the ground while I harvest more fear for Dai Shi!"

As the rinshi terrorize people and essentially rounding them up, Bivalvidon shoots his laser at them, stealing their voices until three heroes arrived to stop him.

"Back off, chowderhead!" Casey shouted.

Bivalvidon chuckled to himself as he saw the red, blue and black ranger in front of him.

"Well, it's about time you showed up. I've been waiting forever!" The mollusk quipped.

"We won't let you steal anymore voices!" Gwen announced as she pointed to their enemy.

"Bring it on, kitty kats!" The menacing mollusk dared.

"With pleasure! Let's do this!" Theo shouted accepting on behalf of his teammates.

"Wonderful! Rinshi...ATTACK!"

The rinshi and rangers rush each other and engage in battle each splitting off into three groups. RJ, who was watching back at the loft while working on the morphers, notices Gwen using a different form of martial arts; it wasn't the Kung Fu the others were using and the rinshi were having a hard time laying a hand on her because of it.

"Wow, she's really good." He commented with a grin.

Lily and Keenan were watching the battle from behind RJ's green chair and Lily was intrigued by the black ranger's fighting style. So much so, that she grabs a pen and paper and wrote a quick note to Keenan. She handed the pad to the silver ranger who read it.

"_What's that she'd doing? It doesn't look like Kung Fu."_ The note read.

Keenan takes the pen and scribbles a quick reply before handing the pad back to Lily. The note read:

"_It's called capoeira."_

Lily nodded in comprehension as RJ looked up when he heard the paper rustling. He knew they were passing some kind of note and wondered what they were 'talking' about.

"Hey, don't leave me out of the loop. What are you guys talking about?" RJ asked cheerfully.

Keenan handed the notepad to RJ who read it with renewed interest.

"Capoeira, huh? Nice." RJ commented. _"My girl's got some skills."_ He thought to himself with a wolfish grin.

Keenan grabbed the notepad and scribbled another short note before handing it back to RJ. This note was a little more specific:

"_Are the voice simulators done yet?"_

"Almost, I just need to upload your speech patterns into them. The mic will scan your lip movements and form the words for you. But use it wisely." RJ instructed before handing each ranger their corresponding pair of modified shades. Lily showed her crossed finger on both hands to Keenan who mimicked her movements. Both hoped this would work...for the sake of the world. Lily tried hers out first.

"Testing...one...two...three. It works! Alright, I can talk again!" Lily shouted.

"Hello...testing...testing. Yes!" Keenan shouted as he high fived his friend.

"Great, now join the others. They need your help."

Both rangers nodded before rushing out to aid their teammates.

END OF CHAPTER 2

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SO what's gonna happen this time? How will they defeat the large clam? R&R (emphasis on the second "R" ;) ) and I'll be better about posting.


	3. Chapter 3

I am SOO SOOO sorry about taking so long with the updates. I've had major comp issues and now that it's fixed, I'll be doing more updating and catching up. Again, I apologize and thank you for being patient! I hope this is worth the wait!

XXXXXXXXXX

The young eagle turned to the yellow cheetah with a knowing smirk before asking her what the three remaining people in the room knew would be a dumb question.

"You ready, Lily?" Keenan asked with a slight grin.

"Do you even need to ask?" Lily replied with a smirk of her own gracing her lovely face.

Both rangers donned their newly reconfigured morphers, grabbed a hanging vine and swung through the large portal as RJ took his position in front of the multitude of tv screens. Meanwhile, Casey, Theo and Gwen were starting to lose ground against the rinshi and Bivalvidon quickly. Theo and Gwen were seconds away from being piled on by the bouncing minions as Casey was surrounded by the large clam and his group of rinshi and getting attacked on all sides.

"There's too many of them!" Theo grunted after being flung into a car hood, making a deep impression wit his aching body.

"We have to keep going. We have to buy Lily and Keenan more time!" Gwen shouted as she struggled to escape a horde of rinshi trying to hold her down.

The red tiger ranger was having his own problems trying to keep Bivalvidon from clamping his hinged shell around his body and snapping him in half. He grabbed a lead pipe that laid next to his feet and lodged it in between the shell halves as they started to close in on him. To his shock, the pipe started to bend under the tremendous bite pressure exerted by the mollusk.

"You gotta be kidding! Where's the calvary when you need them?" He shouted in question to nobody in particular.

Just as Casey thought he was about to 'bite the big one'...(A/N: No pun intended.)...two figures came from out of nowhere and kicked Bivalvidon until his half shells opened, releasing the Jungle Fury leader. Gasping for fresh air, mainly because the inside of Bivalvidon's mouth smelled worse than the inside of a tuna cannery trash can, Casey looked up to see who his savior was.

"You called for the cavalry?" Lily asked with her hands on her hips. She and Keenan arrived wearing their modified Solar Morphers.

Theo and Gwen also looked up from their predicaments to see Lily and Keenan in their fighting stances, poised and ready for combat.

"Keenan, Lily! You two are a sight for sore eyes! Did it work?" Theo asked from his part of the ensuing battle.

"Only one way to find out." Keenan said simply.

With their Solar Morphers already on their faces, they tapped the left side with a beep and shouted with renewed confidence...

"READY! JUNGLE BEAST, SPIRIT UNLEASHED!"

Silver and yellow chi energy whirled around both rangers as they went through their transformations.

"**With the speed of a cheetah! Jungle Fury Yellow Ranger!**" Lily shouted while she struck her pose.

"**With the flight of the eagle! Jungle Fury Silver Ranger!** Yes, it worked!" Keenan exclaimed with a pump of his fist.

"And not a moment too soon, bro. We could use a little help here!" She grunted as she threw a rinshi off her back.

"Just save some for us, Gwen!" Lily shouted as she and Keenan rushed into the fray.

Seeing their comrades join the battle gave Gwen, Casey, and Theo the second wind they needed desperately to continue fighting. Bivalvidon stood frozen and looked to Camille worriedly.

"How did they get their voices back? Our plan is ruined!" The overgrown scallop stated.

"Not quite. And keep your shell on, I have a plan to turn this to our advantage." The chameleon replied with an evil sneer. She leaned into her warrior and whispered something into what could be construed as an earhole. After relaying her idea, Bivalvidon cackled before returning to the battle to put the plan into action.

"This is getting us nowhere! Let's wrap this up, guys! Jungle Chucks!" Casey shouted as his weapon materialized in his hand.

"Jungle Tonfa!" Theo called out.

"Jungle Bo!" Lily exclaimed.

"Jungle Sais!" Gwen yelled.

"Jungle Katana!" Keenan shouted.

The other rangers followed suit as their respective weapons formed in their hands and prepared to charge. Camille, who stood off to the side was confident that her little plan was going to work.

"This should be fun to watch...Rinshi, ATTACK!" Camille barked out.

Her mindless minions thrusted their arms out in front of them with a grunt and hopped into battle against their foes. All five rangers rush in, kiais echoing, and attacked with all of their might against the rinshi and Bivalvidon. They were so engrossed in taking out any rinshi that came close, they had no idea that the large mob was splintering off into five smaller groups with each ranger separated from the others and fending off a pod of bouncing rinshi.

"I don't like the look of this; something's up." The red tiger observed as he used his chucks to send energy waves at his enemies.

"We better watch our backs, guys!" Theo replied as he beat back a few offending rinshi with his tonfa.

As the Blue Jaguar seemed to be holding his own against his splinter group, he heard a distress call emanating from the small pod just to the left of him.

"Aaaahhh! Theo, help!" The voice shouted in panic.

Theo, who still had strong feelings for Lily, disregarded his own advice about watching his back and rushed in blindly to help his friend. He had no idea what he was getting himself into.

"Lily! Hang on, I'm coming!" He shouted as he quickened his pace.

He ran to the spot where a group of rinshi seemed to be dogpiling on top of who he thought was an overrun Lily. He grabs each body one by one, desperately trying to get them off of the fair cheetah.

"Get off of her! Lily, I'm here! Say something!" Theo pleaded as he pulled.

He was more determined than ever to remove Lily from her jam and was getting closer and closer to the source of the voice when it decided to answer.

"Okay...gotcha!" The voice asked in a sinister tone.

To Theo's horror, Bivalvidon sprang from under the last rinshi and blasted the blue ranger with his voice-stealing laser. The following explosion sends Theo flying away from the other rangers and into a demolished building.

"Theo! No!" Casey shouted afraid fro his friend.

As the red leader rushed to the aid of his fallen comrade, Bivalvidon skulks to another spot and resets the same trap that caught Theo unaware. He knew about the black and silver rangers being siblings and decided to alter his decoy tactics just slightly. As the hopping minions covered the large mollusk in another dogpile, Gwen was fighting with her own band of rinshi when she hears what she believes is her brother's voice.

"Gwendy, help me!" The voice shouts in distress.

"Keenan?! Where are..." Before she finishes her sentence, she realized that something was off with that call.

"_Wait a minute. Keenan __**never**__ calls me Gwendy. Something ain't kosher."_ She though to herself.

She walks away from the rinshi she was fighting and goes closer to the where the source of the voice was coming from but stops just a few yards away. Instead of pulling the rinshi away, she had a better idea.

"Yeah, like I'm gonna fall for that! Jungle Sais, HA!"

She throws her pair of sais as the pile of rinshi creating a massive explosion that throws bodies in every direction and revealing the real owner of the voice.

"Aaaaahhhh! Blast you!" Bivalvidon shrieked as he was sent flying.

"Guys, Bivalvidon is using Keenan and Lily's voices to lure us into a trap! Be careful!" Gwen shouted to her friends not realizing that her warning was too late for one of them. She surveyed the area only to find that the real Keenan and Lily were still fighting and that Casey was helping Theo from the debris he was thrown into.

"I think it's too late, Gwen! He already got Theo!" Casey lamented as said ranger had his arm over Casey's shoulder to steady himself. "We have to retreat. Come up with a new plan before all our voices are stolen!"

"You're right! Let's book!"

Keenan gave Casey a hand in taking Theo back to the loft as Lily and Gwen ran behind their friends. Camille, who could never resist getting the last word in, shouted to the retreating forms of the five rangers.

"That's right, you better run! It was a pleasure defeating you, today!" She cackled evilly as she waved to them condescendingly.

The black ranger already couldn't stand Camille and hearing her taunt them as they retreated just irked her even more. Defiantly, she stood and called back to the demeaning chameleon, her confidence unwavering.

"Wipe that smirk off your face, gecko! We'll be back!" Gwen retorted.

"I'm not hard to find, alley cat! Anytime!" Camille shot back with a smirk.

Gwen glares daggers at her before catching up to her friends leaving Camille to disappear. Back at the loft, Theo was in the same predicament Keenan and Lily were before the battle. With his voice stolen, he was flailing his arms like he was trying to fly south for the winter in an attempt to get any sound to come out of his mouth. His lips were moving a million miles a second and it took every bit of Gwen's patience to translate.

"Yeah, I know it sucks, Theo, but RJ's working on modifying your solar morpher, too. Chill out." She sighed before continuing to follow his lips. "And don't talk so fast; I don't speed read."

RJ looked up from his workstation after finishing Theo's morpher and pulled his goggles to his forehead. With three rangers out with stolen voices, he figured that a new approach was in order.

"Actually, since Theo's now mute, we can't risk Bivalvidon taking your voices as well. This calls for Plan B." RJ stated in a serious tone that he rarely used.

"I don't like where this is going. Just what did you have in mind?" Casey queried hesitantly.

"Simple. He lured us into a trap, we do the same. During your last battle, I found a weakness that'll get everyone's voices back, including Lily's, Keenan's and Theo's." He explained before walking to another area of his workstation.

He went to his main screen and pulled up a schematic of Bilalvidon's image. The highlighted area inside his shell glowed a bright red.

"Aim for this spot here. This is his voice box; hit that and it will release all the voices he's stolen." He explained quickly.

"Sounds like a plan. So, how do we go about it?" Gwen asked as she left her spot on the steps leading to the kitchen area.

RJ just looked into Gwen's brown eyes as she asked her question and imagined what would happen if her voice was taken. He'd grown fond of it the moment he first heard her speak; he loved how soft it was and the lilt it had when she was playful. And the memory of when she whispered in his ear and purred still sent sparks throughout his body. He was brought out of his trance when he heard her voice again.

"Um...Earth to RJ, come in, RJ. Is there anybody home?" She asked waving her hand in front of his face.

"Hmm, huh...wha...Oh, sorry. I guess I zoned out for a minute there. You were saying?" RJ asked with a goofy grin plastered on his face making Gwen sigh.

"What's the plan?" She asked again with her arms folded across her chest.

"Oh, right! The plan." He started. _"The plan is to make you my wife someday."_ He thought to himself as he drifted off into his own thoughts again.

"He's gone again." Lily giggled. She and Keenan wore their morphers since it was the only way they could communicate until the monster was defeated. Gwen, who was growing frustrated, grabbed RJ's shoulders and shook him until he snapped out of it.

"The plan, what's the plan?" She asked one last time. "And the next time you zone out on me, you're getting a cold shower." She added with a raised eyebrow and holding a pitcher of ice water.

"Okay, okay." He said quickly while raising his hands. He knew better than to tempt fate a third time. "The plan is four of you will face Bivalvidon while the other hides and fires the Claw Cannon to break the spell"

"That's a good plan except for one tiny little detail. Doesn't the Claw Cannon need **three** people to operate it?" Keenan asked from his spot next to Lily.

Since the two met, there has been telltale signs of mutual interest forming between them. A casual glance here and there, a whiff of each other's perfume or cologne, or maybe it was the fact that the two have never really been apart for more than a few inches except when they were in their own homes. Whatever the reason, it was becoming clear that something was going on between the two rangers.

"I've already worked out that little wrinkle, my young eagle. I'm going to reprogram it for one person." RJ stated with his usual swagger.

"That's all well and good, but there's still the problem of making Bivalvidon stay in one place long enough for us to shoot him." Casey pointed out from the basketball hoop.

"Leave that to me." Gwen suggested.

"Okay, so who does what?" Theo asked. He and the others wondered which parts they were going to play if this plan were to succeed.

"I can man the cannon when I get a clear shot. Theo, you, Lily, Keenan and Gwen can be the bait. And Gwen, we're gonna need you to immobilize him and keep his shell open while I get the shot off."

"Got it covered, Casey." Gwen replied with a nod.

Everyone looked at her with curiosity. Although Casey, Lily, Theo and RJ had just met Gwen a few weeks ago, they knew when she had something up her sleeve...what they didn't know is that she had a reckless streak that came out every once in a while. A fact that her adoptive brother knew all too well.

"Gwen, I know that look in your eyes; what are you planning?" Keenan asked suspiciously. "You're not gonna do anything crazy, are you?"

"Who me? I don't know what you're talking about." Gwen replied with a touch of sarcasm. _"Actually, I do know. And I can't tell you, bro. If I did, you, RJ and probably everyone else in this room would try to stop me." _She thought in her head.

RJ read the exchange between the two siblings and knew he had to step in. He had a feeling he wasn't going to be able to talk her out of doing whatever it was she had churning in her mind, even if he used his 'puppy-dog look' on her. So he went another route. He walked to Gwen and stood in front of her with a serious look on his face.

"Look, I know I can't talk you out of this, but I do want you to promise me one thing...just be careful. Don't do anything to get yourself hurt." He pleaded to Gwen.

"Fine, I promise." The black ranger replied just a tad bit annoyed. He was acting just like her dad, Master Mao, when she was younger.

_**[Flashback]**_

_**It was one year since Gwen and Keenan had been adopted by Master Mao and entered the Pai Zhuq Academy as its newest students. It took them a while to get settled into their new surroundings, but they soon fell into the rhythm of Academy life and adapted quickly. The Pai Zhuq Academy was also the home to a small menagerie of animals, including a stable of horses used as transportation to and from the academy. One day, they welcomed in a new member to the stable, a majestic black stallion with flowing ebony mane and tail and a white star on his forehead. Unfortunately, this particular stallion was never broken in; he still retained his wild spirit and proved to be more than a handful for the masters who dared to even come close. Weeks passed and the masters hadn't made any progress in taming the reckless stallion; to be honest, they hadn't made any progress in entering the corral he was penned up in for fear of injury to themselves. On the stallion's fourth week, Master Mao had brought Keenan and Gwen to see their newest addition only to see some of the masters hesitant to get close to the corral. The stallion, named Maelstrom for his turbulent nature, was bucking and snorting more than he usually was and looked as if he was daring anyone to come into the corral with him. Gwen watched as one master tried to get into the pen only to be chased over the fence by Malestrom. Gwen watched the scene unfold and the eight-year-old girl tapped her father on his side which made him look down at his daughter.**_

"_**Daddy? What's going to happen to the horse if they can't make him calm down?" She asked with wide eyes.**_

_**Master Mao knew how much she loved animals and debated on whether to tell her the fate of the strong-willed equine. It hadn't been that long since the tiny black kitten she brought with her from the orphanage passed away from illness. That wound was still fresh and he wanted nothing more than to make sure she never felt that kind of pain again. But she asked a tough question. He figured lying to the child would only cause more problems in the long run so he opted to tell her the truth...no matter how painful it was. He knelt down to eye level with his daughter and with a heavy heart, he spoke.**_

"_**Lotus Blossom, I'm afraid we were this horse's last chance for a happy home. His previous owner thought he was too dangerous to break and was about to take him to slaughter when we arrived to his ranch and purchased him. He's been here for weeks and I'm afraid his temperament has shown no improvement. The other masters and I have discussed his fate and we're in agreement that the best thing for Maelstrom is to put him down. He's too much of a danger to the students and the masters to remain here."**_

_**His eyes were filled with regret. He didn't want to put the spirited horse down, but he had to think of his charges' safety first, especially his daughter who was shaking her head in disbelief. She didn't think her father or any of the masters could be so cruel.**_

"_**What do you mean, 'put him down?!' That's not fair, daddy! He didn't do anything to deserve this! So, he's rowdy! So are a lot of the students here, but you still gave them a chance and he deserves the same!" She shouted with tear-brimmed eyes.**_

_**Her outburst garnered the attention of everyone there and their heads whipped around to see this young girl stand up for a potentially dangerous animal.**_

"_**But, Lotus. We can't allow him to stay here and endanger..." He started as his hands went to the little girl's shoulders.**_

_**He never got a chance to finish his sentence. Gwen grabbed her father's hands and forcefully pulled out of his grip; she didn't want to hear his explanation.**_

"_**How do you know he's trying to be a danger to everyone?! Maybe he's scared! You said yourself his owner tried to send him to slaughter. I know I'd be scared if someone tried to do that to me!" She shouted in frustration.**_

_**Gwen looked at the ebony stallion as he reared when another master tried to lasso him. She locked eyes with the horse as his head turned to her direction and to her amazement, she felt like she could see into his soul. Without another word, she walked towards the corral and through the wooden post gate despite everyone's vehement protest.**_

"_**Get out of there, Lotus!" Master Mao screamed.**_

"_**Sis, what are you doing?" Keenan asked fearfully.**_

_**But their voices fell on deaf ears. The only thing on Gwen's mind was saving this horse and proving to everyone that he wasn't mean-spirited or a danger to anyone. Calmly, she continued her approach; her hands up in a non-threatening position. Without breaking her gaze with Maelstrom, she spoke.**_

"_**Daddy...just trust me; please. I wouldn't be in here if I didn't know what I was doing." She answered finally.**_

_**When she finished answering her father, she turned her attention back to Maelstrom who appeared to calm down a little. With her soft voice, she spoke to the untrusting horse in an attempt to change his mind about humans.**_

"_**Shhh; easy, boy. It's okay; I won't hurt you. And I won't let them hurt you either." She whispered as she walked even closer to the black horse. When he backed up, she stopped. She didn't want to spook him any more than he was already.**_

"_**Okay, okay. I won't come any closer. You can come to me. Just take your time." She said calmly.**_

_**A few tense moments passed as horse and girl continued to peer into each other's eyes; brown meeting brown. Just as Gwen was searching Maelstrom's soul, he, in turn, was searching hers; searching to see whether this child can give him something he never had in his life...someone he can fully trust. After what seemed like an eternity, the black stallion walked towards Gwen, his large nostrils flaring and his ears twitching due to his wariness. The horse then lowered its head for the young girl to pet. Gwen slowly reached her hand out towards the star on his forehead and gently stroked it.**_

"_**There, see? I'm a friend. You were just scared, weren't you?" She reassured softly.**_

_**Her other hand went to his ears and they twitched again, but this time it was from them being tickled, not from fear. Maelstrom focused his gaze on Gwen's black hair and gently nudged it off of her right shoulder.**_

"_**Yeah, we both have black hair. But I think yours is prettier." She giggled as she continued petting. "You don't have anything to be afraid of here. Everyone's really nice. But if any of them try to treat you badly, you come find me, okay?"**_

_**Maelstrom nodded his head up and down. If Gwen didn't know any better, she could have sworn that the ebony horse understood her.**_

"_**I know you don't let many do this, but...can I ride you?" She asked carefully.**_

_**She would have understood if Maelstrom just walked away, but to her astonishment, and everyone else there, the large horse knelt down to her level and turned his head to face her.**_

"_**Really? I can ride you?" She asked wide eyed.**_

_**The horse nodded again and motioned his head for her to come closer. Smiling brightly, Gwen climbed on top of Maelstrom's back and held onto his long, flowing mane as he stood up to his full height. Maelstrom started to walk slowly around the corral, mindful of the child riding him. Her father, brother and all the masters who were in attendance were too amazed for words as they witnessed this young girl accomplish in minutes that they couldn't in four weeks. Gwen confidently guided Maelstrom to her father and smiled as she got off the horse's back.**_

"_**See, daddy? He's not bad. He was just scared. He's never been treated nice before." She explained simply. "I can handle this."**_

_**Master Mao let out the breath he was holding and chuckled. He knew he'd adopted gifted children; he just had no idea how gifted.**_

"_**Lotus, I had no doubt that you could take on such a task; I was concerned for your safety. It's what fathers do; they worry." He smirked. "I won't lie to you when I say there will be times when I might act a little overprotective..."**_

"_**A little?!" Master Finn called out from the other end of the corral.**_

"_**Not helping!" Master Mao shouted back in jest. "Anyway, I might act overprotective, but it's only because I'd die if anything happened to you or Keenan. No father wants to see his children in pain." He explained as he ruffled Gwen's hair eliciting a giggle.**_

"_**Cut it out, daddy!" She giggled. "So, can he stay?"**_

_**Master Mao pretended to think it over and gave his little girl a smile.**_

"_**Of course he can stay. I don't want to know what would happen if I said 'no'." He laughed.**_

"_**Daddy!" Gwen giggled as she shook her head.**_

_**[End Flashback]**_

"Fine, I promise." Gwen replied with a roll of her eyes.

RJ, who didn't accept her flimsy promise, gently grabbed her by the shoulders and looked so deeply into her brown eyes, it took her breath away. He then spoke, firmly, but sincerely.

"Gwen, please. You have to promise me you won't do anything that can get you hurt. I-I'd die if anything happened to you." RJ pleaded.

Gwen let out a quiet gasp when she heard those words. Just like her dad, yet so different. This was the first time, since being rescued from Arachnikhan's curse, that he revealed his true feelings; and his eyes...they held real emotion. He truly cared for this woman and would go through Hell and back to keep her safe. How can she wave that off? She's couldn't.

"I promise, RJ. Really. I won't get hurt." She answered locking brown eyes with green. Whether he used the dreaded puppy gaze or not, she just couldn't refuse those beautiful green eyes of his.

"Thank you."

That was all he said before wrapping Gwen up in a tight hug and nuzzling his face into her shoulder. His five o'clock shadow rubbing against the soft skin of her neck made Gwen close her eyes. She relished the sensation as she buried her face into the crook of his neck. Seeing the couple in such a warm embrace, Keenan and Lily exchanged quick glances, smiles and blushes between each other; the sparks between the slightly older couple were igniting something in the Silver and Yellow rangers' hearts.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0

End of chapter 3

I hope this was worth the wait! I'll be updating this and posting more JF fics soon. And to all Love Across Time fans, don't worry. I'm working on more chapters of that one, too! Just keep reading and more importantly, REVIEWING! ;)


	4. Chapter 4

Here's the last part, guys! I was spending some time to make this one really good. And just in time for the holidays! Enjoy and HAPPY HOLIDAYS! And my apologies for this chapter being so long. :P Can't help it. I like this style of writing now.

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Meanwhile, back at Dai Shi's lair...

Dai Shi was pacing back and forth in his throne room impatiently waiting for his general to bring back some good news when Camille and Bivalvidon walked in confidently, despite only achieving part of their desired goal of capturing all five rangers' voices. The Black Lion Lord, faced the large mollusk and with a face oddly devoid of emotion, he asked.

"Did you get them all?" Dai Shi inquired.

Bivalvidon heard rumors about times when Dai Shi took an even tone to his voice; this only meant trouble for the unlucky soul who failed him and Bivalvidon felt like he was about to be turned into a statistic.

"I-I-I only managed to capture three voices, My Lord." Bivalvidon stammered fearfully. "But it's the voice of the Blue Ranger. With one more attack, I can snatch the others; I know I can!" He added using Theo's pilfered voice.

"It would have been four if that accursed panther woman hadn't ruined everything!" She spat out. Just the mere mention of the black ranger in any form left a sour taste in her mouth. "Oh, when I get my hands on her..._**I**_ just might end up with a new cape!" She added through gnashed teeth.

Dai Shi noticed how rattled Camille's cage was whenever the subject of the black ranger came up in conversation. This wasn't the first time in the ten millennia he's known the shape shifting reptile that someone managed to best her, but never had one gotten under her scaly skin as deeply as the ebony feline ranger had obviously done. For some reason, despite her constant blunders, he decided to calm her down a little. But just a little; he also knew that when she was enraged, she's a formidable warrior and that's exactly what he needed.

"You'll get your chance, Camille. I want you and this...overgrown scallop to go back out there and capture her voice along with the Red Ranger." Dai Shi ordered.

"With pleasure, Dai Shi. Half Shell, you can have her voice; just be sure to leave the rest of the Black Ranger for me." Camille added bitterly.

"Camille, your complaining is starting to bore me! Make yourself useful for once and take some rinshi in case the mute rangers decide to join them." Dai Shi roared.

"Of course, Dai Shi! As you wish!" Bivalvidon replied quickly as he bowed before pulling Camille with him in a hasty retreat from the throne room.

Meanwhile, back at the loft...

Lily, who was getting increasingly bored, decided to go to the juke box and started to look for some music to dance to. She was never the type to just sit still for anything...her spirit animal was the cheetah, after all. Apparently, she wasn't the only one who thought filling the loft with music was a good idea. As she placed her left hand on the button to flip through the song selections, she felt another hand touch hers. The scent of his Cool Water cologne gave her all the information she needed about who the hand belonged to. She looked down to see the chocolate brown skin of the hand that had settled gently on top of hers and then lifted her shaded eyes to see the stupid grin of Keenan staring back at her.

"Um...sorry about that. I was just..." Keenan apologized as he pulled his hand away.

"Oh, no. It's alright, Keenan. I-I mean I didn't mind...what I meant to say was...hi." She chuckled nervously before looking away.

Both rangers had to turn their faces away from each other to keep the other from seeing the blush creep into their cheeks. They were both thankful that their eyes were hidden by their Solar Morphers but it still didn't dilute the fact that the rest of their bodies spoke volumes, like the way Lily nervously bit her lower lip whenever Keenan would walk past her or how her brother rubbed the hand that had just touched the yellow ranger's a moment ago.

"_Well, well. Looks like little bro is growing up."_ She thought with a smile as she watched the scene play out. _"I'm gonna get __**so**__ much mileage out of this."_ She was genuinely happy for him; that didn't mean she was gonna stop being an older sister and not tease him about it later.

As much as she would have liked to watch her brother act like a total goofball around Lily, she and the others were interrupted by the sound of the alarm blaring. RJ and the rangers run to the viewing screens to see what was causing the ruckus.

"Let me take a wild guess...it's the clam on steroids and Lizard Lips, right?" Lily asked sarcastically.

"You hit the nail on the head, Lily." RJ replied as he sat in his favorite green chair.

"Just as I thought; give someone a nickname and everybody wants to get in on it." Gwen chuckled.

"Look, just because you started that nickname doesn't give you the exclusive rights to it!" Keenan snapped in a serious tone.

Gwen just folded her arms across her chest and gave him her version of the _'I __**know**__ you didn't just sass me'_ look which was a combination of the stink eye and the raised eyebrow. It was the type of glare that could bore a hole through steel. Yes, Keenan may have been roughly the same age as Gwen...and taller, but he was still the **younger** brother in this relationship and Gwen took every opportunity to remind him of that. Just as the 'puppy dog' pout was Gwen's weakness, the 'Mega Medusa' look, as Keenan called it, was his. It worked on the most ornery of her patients so a little brother was a piece of cake for her. The tall eagle quickly remembered his place and decided to apologize for his outburst.

"Okay, okay! I'm sorry! Just stop looking at me like that!" He shuddered as he raised his hands in surrender. "Man, if looks could kill...HEY! Maybe we can use it as an attack!" The taller brother beamed with a toothy grin.

"Not funny, bro." She replied with a smirk, no longer angry at her brother.

"We're even." Keenan grinned at his sister. "But, for real; I'm chomping at the bit, here. I want my voice back."

Theo, who was watching the goings on between Lily and Keenan spoke from his spot on the training mat.

"So do I. I mean, I like my shades as much as the next person, but this is overdoing it. Fran asked me earlier if I had my pupils dilated." The Blue Ranger commented adjusting the shades on his face.

"Well, Theo, my man. If this works, everyone will get their voices back." RJ explained as he swayed.

Casey watched as Camille and her horde wreak havoc on the beach and frightening every vacationer there; stealing their voices in the process. Standing tall, he wore the mantel of leader proudly as he spoke.

"Okay, guys. You remember the plan?"

"Oh, yeah!" Lily answered with a balled fist.

"I'm in!" Gwen answered.

"Let's do this!" Keenan and Theo answered in unison.

"Fight on, Rangers!" RJ added.

One by one, Casey, Theo and Lily grabbed a vine and rappelled through the loft before swinging through the portal above RJ's coveted green chair. Gwen looked on in awe; she always wondered what that big hole was for and seeing her three friends go through it with the agility of chimpanzees, she just couldn't help herself. She looked at her brother and RJ with a grin and said...

"Oh, I have **got **to try that!!"

Before anyone could stop her, she grabbed a vine, horizontally walked a wall before bouncing off of it and kicked off of one of the pillars with the Pai Zhuq insignia painted on it. As she came closer to the hole, she swung through it and yelled loud enough for it to echo...

"**Booyah!!!!!!!**"

Keenan and RJ stood in their spots, mouth agape and eyes blinking as they watched Gwen swing out of the loft like she was auditioning for a role in the next Tarzan movie. They turned to face each other and uttered almost accusingly...

"She's **your** sister." RJ stated as he pointed to the Silver Ranger.

"She's **your** girlfriend." Keenan replied with a laugh and mimicking RJ's action before swinging out of the loft on the last available vine denying the laid back master the chance to correct him.

"**Hey! ****She's not my**...girlfriend?"

RJ whispered the last word of his protest. Hearing Keenan call Gwen his girlfriend triggered a warm sensation that radiated from his heart throughout his body. Another goofy grin slowly sprawled across his face as he took his position in his green chair and replayed one word in his mind...

"_Girlfriend...has a nice ring to it."_ He thought.

At the beach, Camille and Bivalvidon, along with their ever present rinshi, were thoroughly enjoying robbing the frightened citizens of their precious voices and instilling paralyzing fear in its place. During the vocal onslaught, Camille patiently waited for the rangers to arrive to save the day...or as patiently as a chameleon can be.

"Oh, where are they? Here we are, turning this beach into a crater and nobody shows up to stop us. Where's the thrill in that?" Camille asked annoyed.

"You know, for someone who spent 10,000 years hiding in a wall...motionless and invisible might I add...you're really impatient!" Bivalvidon pointed out.

Camille glowered at the large clam before responding.

"You're lucky I don't serve you on the half shell." The badly dressed chameleon retorted.

"Um...that's oysters." Bivalvidon corrected.

Camille gritted her teeth and grabbed the gargantuan clam, pulling him close to her face.

"That's...beside...the point!" She hissed as she shoved her servant away from her. "Maybe those rangers finally developed some common sense and turned tail? No skin off my nose if they did. It would make my job a whole lot easier."

Just as Bivalvidon was about to answer his superior, five voices kiaied as they flipped into view landing perfectly on their feet in front of Camille and her gang.

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?" Theo asked as he and his friends stood in their ranger suits.

"Well, tough luck! We're not going anywhere! You, however, that's another story!" Lily taunted.

Camille's eyes narrowed as she turned her attention to the black ranger. Ever since she showed up, she'd been the bane of Camille's **very **long exstence.

"I could have gone another 10,000 years without seeing **you** again." Camille commented with a sneer.

"I wouldn't recommend that. The first 10,000 have been less than kind to you. As bad as your skin looks, your spirit animal should have been the alligator." Gwen quipped tilting her head to one side and folding her arms in front of her chest.

Bivalvidon tried to hold back a snicker and failed as he let out a loud laugh that Camille found very insulting. The irate chameleon, in turn, glared at her warrior; succeeding in making him literally and figuratively 'clam up'.

"Well, that doesn't matter. I don't mind going another round with you." Camille smirked.

"Well, bring it, Lizard Lips!" Keenan challenged.

Camille fumed when she heard that insulting nickname given to her by Gwen in their first fight. It was bad enough **she** called her that, but for the other rangers to use it...that was crossing the line.

"How dare you...you molting little...this is all **your** fault!" She shouted as she pointed to Gwen.

Gwen smiled under her helmet. She liked knowing she could push the reptile's buttons and proceeded to goad her even more.

"Well, if you don't like it, do something about it! I got nothing but time." The black ranger taunted.

"Oh, I plan to!"

Camille closed her dark brown eyes and when they opened, they had an eerie green glow to them. She waved her arms in large circles, a blackish purple chi swirled around her body as she did. In a flash, she had transformed into her shining green armor holding her pair of sais in her hands.

"Rinshi, take care of the others. Bivalvidon, care to go two on one?" She asked, her gaze never leaving Gwen's.

"Gotta love unfair advantages!" Bivalvidon cackled.

As the rinshi hopped towards Keenan, Lily and Theo, Gwen was set to face both the chameleon and the clam in a handicap battle. She smirked under her helmet as the visor flashed yellow.

"This **is** unfair...to you. I love handicap fights. **Jungle Sais!**" Gwen taunted as she took her fighting stance. "Let's go!" _"I just hope Casey can pull the trigger when the time comes."_ She thinks to herself as she goes over the plan in her head...which had to be reworked. She hadn't planned on Camille being there.

Casey and the other rangers watch as the rinshi close in on them and also prepared themselves for combat.

"Let's bring on the fury, guys! **Jungle Chucks!**" Casey shouted.

"**Jungle Tonfa!**"

"**Jungle Bo!**"

"**Jungle Katana!**"

The other rangers followed suit and charged into the fray, weapons clashing with rinshi bodies while Gwen fought against both Camille and Bivalvidon. The red and blue rangers were holding their own while Lily used her natural grace to best the masked minions that tried to overwhelm her. Keenan, who used some rhythmic moves of his own, noticed the yellow ranger and the proverbial light bulb went off in his head.

"Hey, Lily? I've got an idea. Follow my lead, okay?" Keenan suggested.

"Okay, but what did you have in mi-IND!?"

Lily squealed out as the Silver Ranger took her by the hand and started incorporating dance moves into their fighting style. Now, Lily was familiar with this tactic, seeing as how she taught Casey and Theo this strategy to combat Stingerella with great success. But she had to admit, being swung around by Keenan was new for her, especially since he was using some swing dancing steps he saw on tv once. The young eagle turned the cheetah to face him and lifted Lily up as she used her powerful legs to kick a couple of rinshi on their backsides as they tried to charge. On the downswing, her body swung and twisted around Keenan's waist as he used her as a living weapon; her arms and legs punching and kicking in whichever direction she was turning. And in their grand finale, Keenan grabbed Lily for a spinning turn on her heel with her other legs landing blows before the two rangers were standing back to back. As a rinshi rushed in from either side for a last ditch attack, Keenan locks arms with Lily and flips her over his back with her kicking the enemies that was first in front of the yellow ranger and finishing with a blow to the one approaching the silver ranger. When there were no more enemies surrounding the feline and avian rangers, Keenan looked at Lily with a smirk under his helmet.

"So, Cheetah Girl, whaddya think of my idea?"

Lily was breathless; not because of the energy exerted in the previous battle but because of Keenan. She knew had fighting skills, but she had no idea he was such an amazing dancer. Her head was reeling and she had to gather her thoughts so she didn't say anything dumb.

"That was...was so...**wow!**" Lily whispered. "You've got some moves. I'm impressed."

"Well, thank you, Miss Lily. You're pretty good yourself." Keenan complimented with a bow.

"Look out!" Lily shouted.

She pushes Keenan down and does a leapfrog split over him to kick a couple of rinshi who tried to launch a sneak attack.

"Whoa! Thanks, Lil-hang on!" Keenan warned.

He returns the favor of pushing her body down and swings his leg over her in a front hook kick that connects with a rinshi's head.

"Man, I thought we were done with them?" Keenan asked in annoyance.

"We were...they just weren't done with us." Lily retorted as she punches more hopping rinshi.

Keenan added his two cents in by ducking a few punches and getting in a few of his own and the two dancing rangers continued to fight off the swarm of masked warriors.

"Hey Lily..." Keenan started as he grabbed Lily's hand and flipped her into a front cartwheel kick. "I was wondering...I mean if you're not to busy..."

"Go on..." She urged as she rolled over Keenan's back, kicking as she did.

"Well...there's this party we're having at the animal hospital and..."

Before he could finish, Lily grabs Keenan's arm in a wrist lock and the two did a tandem kick just like Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker did in the Rush Hour movies. Lily was having so much fun using the dance moves that what the silver ranger was trying to ask her didn't register until a half second later.

"Why, Keenan. Are you trying to ask me out?" Lily asked coyly.

"Trying to, yes. And it'd be a whole lot easier if these rinshi would quit trying to throw salt on a brother's game!" He replied as he flipped one over his shoulder.

Lily giggled under her helmet; the yellow ranger was very flattered. She was asked out lots of times in the academy, but she had to admit...being asked in the middle of a heated battle where the fate of the world hung in the balance was an experience she wouldn't forget.

"It's not every day I get asked out during a world-saving fracas. How can I say no to that?" Lily replied as she delivered an axe kick to a rinshi.

"So...that's a yes?" Keenan asked.

"Of course it is." Lily replied throwing a backward punch.

Theo, who was keeping an eye on the two flirting rangers, figured it was time they focused on more important matters...like getting their voices back, for starters.

"Um...I don't wanna sound like a stick in the mud or anything, but...oh, who am I kidding?** Can you two wait until **_**after**_** we save the world before you start playing **_**Love Connection**_**!?**" Theo shouted as he fought off a band of rinshi.

Keenan and Lily looked towards the sound of a frustrated blue jaguar and cringed. They figured their flirting was making him jealous.

"Sorry!" They both apologized.

Meanwhile, Gwen, wielding her ebony sais, was blocking punches and kicks from either side of her as Camille and Bivalvidon attacked simultaneously. The pair was feeling very cocky and tried to sandwich the black ranger in between two roundhouse kicks, but the crafty panther went into a straddle split effectively ducking the assault. The kicks missed and the two evil animals ended up on the receiving end of them, knocking each other down in the process.

"Give up?" Gwen asked standing over the fallen foes in a defensive stance.

"Hardly! You should be the one surrendering, Pussycat!" Camille responded.

"Lady, I'm just getting started!" The black ranger taunted.

And to prove it, she jumps in the air and grabs Camille's head with her legs while her arms wrap around the head of the hulking quahog and with a shift in her body weight, she throws both of them a good ten yards. Seeing where Camille landed, Gwen ran to where her brother and Lily were still fighting.

"Lily, can I borrow your bo for a minute?" She asked tapping the yellow ranger on her shoulder.

Lily turned after using her bo on an encroaching rinshi and faced her comrade.

"Um...sure." She replied handing over her weapon. "But why do you..."

"Thanks, I'll bring it back!" Gwen shouted as she ran back to her previous spot.

Casey watched the black ranger during her melee as he was involved in his own battle. He was waiting for her signal.

"_I didn't like that look Gwen had in her eyes back at the loft."_ The red tiger thought warily. _"I hope she's not gonna do anything reckless!"_

Gwen ran back to Camille and Bivalvidon and noticed that the irate lizard was slowly getting back up. Gwen had thrown her close to the side of the cliff which was a stroke of luck. Her original plan was to throw her sais at Bivalvidon's wrists pinning him to the rock wall. But since Camille decided to get in on the act, the black feline had to tweak her plan a bit.

"_Okay, time to execute plan B!_**"** Gwen thought to herself.

She knew the huge risk she was taking. She knew she could possibly get hurt...or worse. She also knew that the safety of the entire planet was at stake and that took precedent over her own well-being.

Well, Camille...can't have you butting in anymore, so..." Gwen started as she threw her sais at the armored chameleon.

Both daggers pinned Camille's wrists to the rock wall with her arms out. The stunned chameleon struggled against her bonds, but it was futile. The sais were so deep in the rocks that she dropped her own sais onto the sand. When she was sure Camille was completely immobilized, she waved to Casey for him to set the plan in motion. As the red ranger ran to charge the Claw Cannon, Gwen went to Bivalvidon and got ready to execute the second part of her strategy. She tapped the large invertebrate on the shoulder making him turn around and said...

"Hey, Clamdigger! Say 'aaaaaahh'!"

"Aaahhh-AAAAHHH!" Bivalvidon shrieked.

As the dim witted clam opened his shell, Gwen shoved Lily's bo in between, keeping it open for Casey to fire the cannon. She then went around, grabbed Bivalvidon's arms and pulled them behind him as she dug her heel into his back. To the untrained eye, she looked like she was trying to tie a very tight corset around the clam. Back in the loft, RJ was on the edge of his green chair as he witnessed what the black panther was up to.

"_Gwen, what do you think you're doing?! Get out of there!_" The Pai Zhuq master thought worriedly.

"Casey! Shoot!" Gwen ordered.

Casey looked on and saw that, for the second time since meeting her, Gwen was in the line of fire. If he did as she ordered, he'd take her out, too.

"Are you crazy? I can't shoot with you right there!" Casey explained.

"Someone had to hold him still! Now, do it! Shoot!" Gwen egged on.

"NO! I can't do that!" Casey regretted.

Gwen was growing more and more irate. She could understand Casey's point of view of not hurting a friend, but what was her life compared to the lives of so many? From behind the clam, she shouted one more time.

Casey, if you don't fire that cannon right now, I'm gonna come over there, rip that overgrown bb gun out of our hands and shoot **you** with it! Now, don't argue with me! Fire!!!" Gwen ordered with conviction and slight threatening.

Casey let out an audible gulp and pulled the plunger on the cannon back.

"Ma'am! Yes, ma'am!" He replied like an army private. "Powered by animal spirits...Fire!"

The red tiger pushed the plunger sending a fiery ball of combined animal energy hurtling towards Bivalvidon. Gwen vaulted herself onto the Clam's shoulders, squatted down to grab Lily's bo out of the clam's shell a split second before the fireball made impact and, with attitude, shouted...

"Sayonara, sucka!"

With bo in hand, Gwen leaps into the air safely out of the way of the impending collision of fireball and soon-to-be-baked clam. She lands perfectly in front of her friends and hands the yellow ranger her primary weapon. The ball of energy slammed into the large clam and the explosion set free all the trapped voices in the forms of glowing spheres of multicolored light. As the voices flew to their rightful owners, three small, sparkling, tinted balls of yellow, blue and silver floated to Lily, Theo and Keenan respectively and were absorbed back into their bodies. Looking at Lily, Theo and her brother, she wondered if it really worked.

"Well, try to say something." Casey mirrored the panther's curiosity by voicing the question.

The blue, yellow and silver rangers temporarily powered down and took off their shades in order to see if they had succeeded in getting their voices back. Lily went first.

"Ahem, testing. One, two, three...All right! I'm back in business!" Lily screamed as she jumped for joy.

"Yes! My velvet voice is back!" Keenan replied singing a few notes. "If I had gotten Theo's voice, I don't know what I'd do." He joked.

Theo playfully smacked Keenan on his arm.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Theo chuckled.

As the rangers laughed, Keenan Lily and Theo put their shades back on as RJ's voice came over on their comlinks.

"Congrats, ranger dudes! You sent that cantankerous clam packing!" RJ praised. "And Gwen...don't EVER do that again! You yanked the yin and yang right outta me! Do you know how much meditating I'm gonna have to do to get it back in balance?" RJ ranted.

RJ had always been this even keeled, laid back, go-with-the-flow kind of guy. Nothing seemed to phase him. But that changed when Gwen walked into his life. He had no idea just how much her presence affected him until he saw her nearly get blasted. The rangers chuckled, but the black ranger did see his point. She never realized how frightened RJ was for her. She could just imagine how he must have felt when he saw her almost get hit.

"RJ, breathe. I'm really sorry about that; I didn't have a choice. But on the upside, I didn't get hurt...just like I promised." Gwen said reassuringly. "Now, just calm down; this frantic schtick doesn't suit you, babe."

"I know, I just...wait, did you just call me 'babe'?" RJ asked.

"Hey! Someone get me out of here!" Camille grunted as she continued to pull on her restraints.

Gwen, who was growing tired of Camille's caterwauling, walked up to her and pulled her free. It wasn't because she had sympathy for the chameleon, far from it. She just wanted her sais back.

"You'll pay for this!" Camille threatened as she rubbed her wrists. She had since powered down from her armored form.

"Allow me, Camille!" Screamed the half shelled one.

The large clam roared threateningly and grew to even more immense proportions, dwarfing his superior and the rangers.

"Looks like we're back on the clock. Ready!?" Theo asked.

"Ready!" Lily and Keenan answered.

All three placed their shades onto their faces and called out...

"**Jungle Beast! Spirit Unleashed!**"

Silver, yellow and blue chi whirled around the rangers forming their uniforms as their helmets appeared.

"Let's do this!" Casey ordered confidently.

"Animal spirits, Unite as one!"

Four feline zords and one avian zord came together to form one large fighting machine.

"PRIMAL FURY MEGAZORD!" They all shouted.

"Don't hold back, Bival–" Camille couldn't finish her order because a certain fly was about to make an appearance.

"Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen! We have a rip snorting fight for you today as the rangers take on the voice stealing Bivalvidon!" Flit announced as he exited Camille's mouth. "Bivalvidon needs to watch his step in this one; he's facing four cats and one eagle and they all love shellfish."

"Can you warn me next time you're gonna fly out of my stomach?" Camille complained.

The Primal Fury megazord charges into battle, trading blows with the now huge mollusk.

"This battle's getting too hot!" Bivalvidon pointed out.

The huge clam hid inside his shell as the Megazord tried to break it open by punching it with its panther fists.

"And what's this? Oh, the clever clam has decided to use his best assets and retreat into his shell." Flit observed. "This is gonna be a tough nut to crack for our plucky rangers. What will they do?"

"Oh, great! This tactic again! Can't he come up with something original?" Theo complained.

Lily knew her elephant mace could open it, but she had a brainstorm thanks to Keenan. This time, cracking this shell was going to take some finesse.

"Hey, Casey? Let me and Keenan take over. I have an idea." The yellow ranger offered.

"Be my guest. I wanna see what you're up to." Casey agreed.

He and Theo moved to the outer positions as Lily and Keenan took the middle. The cheetah turns to the eagle and asks him a familiar question.

"Keenan...care to dance?" She asked performing a dainty curtsy.

"Milady, it would be an honor." The eagle replied with a bow.

On the ground, Camille and Flit continued to keep tabs on the ensuing battle.

"Well, well; it seems the rangers have a strategy planned. I wonder what they have cookin'? Bivalvidon better hope he's not on the menu." Flit annoucned with a chuckle.

Camille gave her winged sidekick a disgusted sneer at his attempt at humor.

"Nothing they do will help them now, Flit. Bivalvidon can steal their voices in one fell swoop." Camille pointed out.

"We'll see; won't we, folks?" Flit asked as he turned his attention back to calling the battle.

The rangers tried one last time to open with shell with their conventional punches without success before Lily turned to Gwen.

"Gwen, can you do me a favor and have your panther sit this one out for a minute?" The yellow cheetah asked.

"Not a problem." Gwen agreed as she called off her panther.

"Thanks; now the stage is set! Calling on the spirit of the elephant!"

Teal colored energy rose from the top of the Megazord and formed the mighty Elephant Zord. The mechanical pachyderm trumpeted before morphing it's legs into shoulder pads and forming the much needed Jungle Mace.

"Primal Fury Megazord with Elephant Power!" The rangers shouted.

"Oh, and there's a substitution! Now the elephant has taken the field!" Flit shouted.

Camille grunted in annoyance. She didn't like where this was headed.

"Let's hit him with some of that speed, Cheetah Girl!" Keenan offered using his new pet name for Lily.

"I like the sound of that!" Lily responded taking the eagle's hand.

The Megazord wraps the chain of the mace around its leg until the weighted ball was situated firmly on its right foot. When everything was in place, Keenan positioned himself as the yellow ranger stood on her tiptoes and shouted...

"**Cheetah Pirouette!!**"

With blinding speed, the Megazord spun on one leg, its other foot banging repeatedly into Bivalvidon's shell until it cracks open. The injured mollusk screams out in pain as one more kick knocks him back.

"Amazing footwork! What a turn of events! Only the rangers can turn a beautiful dance form like ballet into an effective offense!" Flit exclaimed.

"What is this? A fight or a dance recital?!" Camille snarled.

"Remind me to thank mom for signing me up for dance lessons." Lily commented in a standing split with Keenan holding her like a professional ballerina.

"Now that was poetry in motion!" Theo complimented.

"Thanks, Theo. Well, Keenan, beat that." She challenged.

When that offense was finished, the elephant zord retreated and the panther zord took it's place as the chestplate and fists.

"A challenge. Okay; let's take this to the streets!" Keenan accepted.

Keenan started out with consecutive backflips and then broke out his hip hop dance moves, using everything from pop locking to breakdancing to beat the tar out of Bivalvidon.

"Whoa! Clam Boy just got **served**! These kids are a one-megazord dance crew! I could do those moves too if my arms and legs weren't so short." Flit remarked in jest.

"Don't blame your short limbs for your lack of dancing ability, Flit." Camille shot back.

"I wouldn't talk, Camille! The last time you tried to dance, Dai Shi thought you were having a fit!" The tiny fly retorted.

After Keenan finished his assault, Casey took the leader role in the center of the group.

"Let's finish this off!" The red ranger ordered.

"Right! Jungle Stampede!" They all shouted as they took the runner's position.

The Megazord waited for Bivalvidon to rise to his feet before it started running towards him.

"Can it be? It is! You know it; you love it...well, maybe Camille doesn't. These kids are going for the dreaded Jungle Stampede!" Flit shouted as he buzzed and flew circles around Camille's head, avoiding swat after swat.

The Megazord split into solid clones of itself and each one barreled into the weakened form of Bivalvidon who took a massive explosion from each clone before he turned an ashen gray.

"No!!!! This can't be!" He cried out before shattering into a thousand pieces.

Camille growls as she witnesses another one of her warriors bite the dust...and turn to dust at the hands of the rangers. Flit couldn't resist rubbing it in.

"Well, it looks like they got you again, Camille. Judging by my scorecard, you have a huge goose egg against the black ranger and her friends. How do you feel?"

"Oh...**shut up you overrated gnat!!!!!**" Camille shouted before giving Flit a hard backhanded swat.

"There you have it, folks...she's pissed." Flit commented woozily.

Later that day at JKP, the jungle themed pizza parlor was packed and all abuzz about the newest taste treat. Gwen and Keenan decided to drop in after they returned to the animal hospital to check on their patients when RJ escorted them to the cash register area. Along the way, the sibling pair listened in on the raves the customers were giving to the newest pizza creation. The new pizza had cheese, red peppers lined up to look like claw marks black olives to represent spots, paw shaped impressions pressed into the edge of the crust and for the finishing touch, kiwi slices cut into the shape of paw prints topping off the pizza.

"The paw impressions in the crust are a nice touch." One man commented as he took another bite.

"The claw marks are so cool!" One kid raved.

"And the kitten paw shaped kiwi slices are adorable. It's almost too cute to eat." Another woman cooed..

Both Keenan and Gwen mouthed the words 'kitten paws' to each other as their faces were marred with confusion.

"Um, what's going on?" Keenan asked with increasing curiosity.

RJ put his arms around the shoulders of each sibling and grinned as he wore his master chef garb complete with zebra print bandana.

"Gwen, Keenan. Today, you are witness to the debut of our newest item. I call it Kitty Pride Pizza." RJ announced with a flourish of his arms.

"So you named it after an X-Men character?" Gwen asked.

Fran and the rangers laughed.

"No. To be honest, you and another soul were the main inspiration in this." Fran explained.

"Me? How did I help?" Gwen wondered.

"Remember when RJ was that creepy spider slave and I was cleaning JKP when you came in? And you shouted 'One Thrilla Gorilla, extra kiwi' to snap me out of it?" When Gwen nodded in remembrance, Fran continued. "Well, I told RJ about it and he thought using kiwi was a good idea."

Gwen smiled, but she still wondered who the "other soul" was that had a hand in this pizza's creation.

"That's great, but that still doesn't explain who the main inspiration is." Keenan pointed out.

Casey, Theo, Lily and RJ all shifted nervously in their spots. They knew who inspired them to make the pizza, and call it kitty pride; they just weren't sure if they wanted to tell the inspiration's caregiver just how he did it. Gwen looked at the three rangers andmaster and sensed something was being kept from her.

"Okay, so, spill. Who gave you the idea?" Gwen asked once more.

Everyone turned to stare at the blonde haired ranger with the backwards cap. When she realized that her so-called friends had just thrown her under the bus, she slowly turned and tried to sneak away. Unfortunately for her, that plan got chucked out the window when Gwen called her name.

"Lily?" Gwen said in an accusing tone.

Lily paused and struggled to think of a good lie. When she couldn't....

"Um, Lily's not here right now so please leave your message after the beep...BEEP!" The yellow ranger uttered as she tiptoed further away.

"Come here." The black panther ordered with her finger.

Lily cringed and reluctantly walked closer to the older ranger.

"Who?" That was the only word out of Gwen's mouth.

RJ stepped in and decided to take some of the heat off of his fair haired employee.

"It was your cheetah cub...MacGyver." RJ said with a grin.

Keenan had to stifle the loud laugh that was bubbling inside him. He'd heard the baby cheetah's name mispronounced so many times, but this one was one of the best. Gwen just shook her head, as did Lily.

"Makomba?" The girls corrected.

"Yeah, him. By the way, just what does 'Makomba' mean anyway?"

When RJ asked that question, the others turned to the lady vet for the answer. They, too, wondered where she got the name.

"Actually...I don't know. I saw it on a Disney Channel show a long time ago and thought it sounded cool." Gwen admitted with a shrug of her shoulders.

The group all had blank expressions on their faces. They all thought there was some deep, profound meaning to the tiny kitten's name. But no...she got it from the Disney Channel of all places.

"The Disney Channel?!" Theo squeaked out.

"Hey, it was either that or the dude with the weird hair from High School Musical." Keenan chimed in.

Gwen nodded and shuddered. That was one franchise she could never get into and was in disbelief as to how it grew into such a phenomenon.

"Anyway, I had a feeling something else happened while Makomba was in your care." Gwen continued. Lily had hoped the name discussion would sidetrack the black ranger.

Lily knew she couldn't keep it a secret any longer. She took a deep breath and looked to her friend s for support...and to fill in any details she might miss.

"Well...it's like this..."

**[Flashback]**

_**It was the morning after little Makomba had slept over in the loft of JKP. Everyone had eaten breakfast and showered before putting on their clean uniforms. Fran had called saying she would be a little late but would be in to help prepare for the day's business. Lily had scratched Makomba behind the ears before joining her friends down in the kitchen.**_

"_**So where's little Mariachi?" Casey snickered.**_

_**Lily rolled her eyes at the red tiger and grabbed the cheese grater and a block of mozzarella. She was grating the cheese into a bowl when she finally answered.**_

"_**If you mean Makomba, he's upstairs." She replied. "He was watching t.v. when I left him."**_

"_**So, what's on the tube for him?" RJ asked as he blended the homemade tomato sauce.**_

"_**Thundercats." Lily replied with her sweet smile.**_

"_**Oh, man! Wait till the little guy sees Cheetara!" Theo laughed.**_

_**Everyone laughed and chatted as they prepared the ingredients for the pizzas. None of them noticed the tiny, spotted ball of fluff that was inching his way down the stairs and into the kitchen. Casey went to grab a roll of pepperoni from the table behind him but his hand latched onto something else.**_

"_**That's weird. I don't remember this pepperoni going bad. It feels like it has fur growing on it." Casey pointed out.**_

_**Casey brought his hand up the baby cheetah's body and felt two little twitching ears. The red ranger looked down at his hand and his eyes grew wide when he saw little Makomba innocently looking up at him and chirping cutely.**_

"_**What are you doing in here?" Casey asked, half expecting the little feline to answer him.**_

_**Hearing Casey raise his voice, little Makomba wriggled out from under his hand and bolted across the table that had some pizza dough rising in deep dish pans.**_

"_**Oh, crap! Guys, gimme a hand!" Casey shouted.**_

_**Everyone scattered throughout the kitchen to corner the small, but speedy kitten. As Makomba ran across the table, he padded over the pans with dough only to have his paws press into them making impressions in every pan.**_

"_**I got him!" Lily shouted as she reached for the cheetah cub.**_

_**But the kitten saw her coming and jumped from the table to the middle island. Lily missed and her hand flipped one of the pans over, flinging the contents right into Theo's face. The blue ranger stumbles as he removes the pliable dough from his face and bumps into the island knocking over bowls of cheese and vegetables.**_

"_**I can't see!" Theo says as he spits the flour from his mouth.**_

_**Makomba felt the island jar and leapt onto the table with the blender...and the easily accessible 'on' button. As soon as his paw hit the button, RJ remembered that he forgot to put the lid on. Soon red sauce spewed from the blender like a volcano all over the kitchen. RJ rushes over to turn off the blender and starts slipping and sliding across the floor. Not missing a beat, RJ starts to sing.**_

"_**I feel good! Na na na na na na na!"**_

_**Then his feet slide in opposite directions and the Pai Zhuq pizza chef goes into some unplanned splits. Again, not missing a beat, RJ adds...**_

"_**No, I don't! Na na na na na na na! Somebody help me!" She shouts in an octave higher than his normal voice.**_

"_**All right, RJ!" Casey cheered.**_

"_**No, I'm serious! **__Somebody help me!!!__**" RJ shouted again in a high voice.**_

_**As Theo and Casey ran to help their boss and master out of his painful predicament, Fran walked in and gasped so loud, she sounded like she was having an asthma attack.**_

"_**Wha-what in the world happened in here!? This place is a mess!" Fran shrieked.**_

_**The four-eyed employee waited for someone to answer her when she heard the sound of slurping. She followed the sound the middle of the floor and she saw what everyone else did...a small kitten licking pizza sauce from its spotted fur. Makomba looked up when it sensed eyes watching him, but quickly went back to licking the yummy sauce off his body.**_

"_**Guys, we can't have a cat in here! It's not sanitary!" Fran ranted.**_

"_**Sorry, Fran. I'll get him out of here. I'm supposed to take him home right now, anyway." Lily explained as she picked up the tomato flavored cub and carried him upstairs to clean him off before returning him to the animal hospital.**_

_**RJ looked around his now ransacked kitchen and groaned. He knew he had to have it scrubbed from top to bottom due to Makomba's little romp. As he surveyed the damage caused by the jungle kitten, he noticed the paw prints in the pizza dough and in the kiwi slices he had cut up for a snack.**_

"_**Hmm. There maybe a silver lining to this dark could. But for now, I need you to help me scrub this kitchen until there's no trace of cheetah cub. Which means, unfortunately, we have to throw out everything Meringue (A/N: Pronounced Ma-Reng-Gay...like the dance) got into and start over with fresh ingredients." RJ ordered.**_

"_**Aw, man!" The rangers and Fran groaned.**_

"_**This is why I'm a dog person!" Fran mumbled under her breath as she started the cleanup detail.**_

**[End flashback]**

"He's a cutie pie, but boy is he a handful! I don't know how you do it, Gwen!" Lily observed as she giggled..

"Who knew one little furball could cause so much trouble." Fran grumbled.

"Come on, Fran. Lighten up; it was an accident." Casey reassured.

"So was Chernobyl." Fran shot back with a smirk.

Keenan, as usual, was laughing his head off.

"Man, to be a fly on the wall when you guys had Makomba. I bet it was better than cable!" Keenan smiled.

Gwen was processing every detail her friends had just finished telling her.

"_He's a one kitten wrecking crew!_" She thought with a chuckle.

But despite all the seemingly far fetched details, one, and only one, thing stood out in her mind...

"Meringue?" She asked as she shrugged her shoulders. It was clear to her that they had no interest in calling Makomba by his correct name. But her mind came back to the task at hand. "See, this is why I teach kids that wild animals don't make good pets."

"So, I guess this means I can't come visit little Makomba anymore, huh?" Lily asked sadly.

The yellow ranger had grown fond of the little cub and not just because she shared the same spirit or because she thought he was incredibly cute. It was the maternal instinct in her that blossomed when she first laid eyes on the spotted kitten. For that reason, Gwen couldn't stay mad at the blonde cheetah.

"Of course you can visit him. You just can't smuggle any more animals out of the hospital; that's all." Gwen added with a smirk.

"Fine, I promise." Lily replied...with her fingers crossed behind her back.

Keenan, who was standing next to her, looked behind her and smirked at her crossed fingers...then his eyes traveled to her posterior.

"_Nice."_ He thought with a grin. He then looked up and addressed the group. "As a matter of fact, you can all come visit the animals anytime you want. They miss you, too."

"Really? That's so cool! Theo said happily. "I kinda miss Olmec pouncing on me."

"Awesome! It's not every day you're friends with a real tiger." Casey commented.

"Then it's settled. We'll visit tomorrow after work." RJ suggested with his swagger.

Keenan and Lily looked at each other and faced the rest of their friends with silly grins.

"Actually, that's perfect. Tomorrow's the night of our office party. You're all invited if you want to come." Keenan offered. " I know I can count on one RSVP."

The young eagle winked at Lily who turned away with a giggle. Gwen raised an eyebrow. She had no idea of the exchange he and the yellow cheetah had during their last battle and pulled her brother aside and out of earshot of Fran.

"Keenan, don't tell me you asked out the girl during the battle." Gwen prodded.

"Okay, I won't." Keenan quipped with a smart remark before returning to the group.

All Gwen could do at that point was let out a drawn out sigh.

"_My brother is a piece of work._" She thought in annoyance before rejoining her friends.

Casey was the first to break the ice when the silver ranger appeared again.

"So, just what did you mean by that, Keenan? Who RSVP'ed?"

"Guilty." Lily grinned as she raised her hand. "Keenan invited me earlier; I'm his date."

Gwen, Casey, Fran and RJ all smiled when they heard the news. They all sensed the sparks bouncing off of the two since they met at the animal hospital and it was more evident as the days went on. Theo, on the other hand, didn't know how to feel. He was happy that Lily was going on a date; he just wished it was with him.

"I can't wait to see Cita and the little ones again." Lily offered. "Oh, yeah. I just thought of something. You never told us what the girl cheetah's name was."

"Her name's Sapphyri." Gwen grinned.

"You have a flair for names. Where did you get that one from?" RJ asked with interest.

Gwen really didn't want to tell them that she got it from "Flavor of Love"...another t.v. show.

"Um...I'll tell you later. Right now, I think I'll try a slice of Kitty Pride Pizza." Gwen quickly said to change the subject.

"Same here. Looks good." Keenan commented s his stomach growled.

"One large Kitty Pride; coming up!" Casey said as he made his way into the kitchen.

That evening, the five rangers, RJ and Fran joined in the enjoyment of the newest taste sensation to hit Ocean Bluff. At a table in the middle of the restaurant, two couples sat side by side and exchanged glances of interest. And it was all thanks to the antics of a beady-eyed little anklebiter.

The End...for now.

Oh, don't think we're done with these guys yet! There's PLENTY more where this came from! Come on! You don't really think we're gonna cut it off right here without knowing if Keenan/Lily and RJ/Gwen are gonna go further? And what about Casey and Theo? NO! They're not hooking up! I'm still debating on whether to bring in some minor girl characters for them. Hey, red and blue need love, too! So, read, review....ESPECIALLY review! And pass it on! And keep an eye out for the next installment..._**PRJF: When Blue Turns Green!**_ May the Power Protect you!


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